A highly ambitious plan to enrol half of the 25.1 million out-of-school children in Pakistan by 2030 has just been undertaken by the Sindh government in collaboration with UNICEF. The move aims to tackle larger issues such as poverty, child labour, gender discrimination and access to education over the next five years to improve the country’s literacy. It goes without saying that ‘addressing’ issues like poverty, discrimination and the like is a highly simplified
Child Rights in Focus
HIV/AIDS is rapidly becoming one of Pakistan’s most serious healthcare concerns. According to the WHO, new infections have risen by 200 per cent over the last 15 years – from 16,000 in 2010 to 48,000 in 2024. The WHO also estimates that 350 000 people are living with HIV in Pakistan, but, most alarmingly, almost 8 in 10 persons affected do not know their status. Why do so many people not know their HIV/AIDs
• 159 patients admitted to three city hospitals this year • Majority of them contracted the incurable virus due to ‘unsafe healthcare practices’ • Alarm raised over lack of basic infection control protocols in hospitals KARACHI: Three hospitals in Karachi have recorded a dramatic increase in the number of paediatric human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) cases over the last nine months and their numbers continue to grow, it emerged on Friday. According to sources, 10
PESHAWAR: A single-member Peshawar High Court bench has granted bail to an Afghan juvenile arrested by police for illegal stay in the country. Chief Justice S M Attique Shah accepted the bail plea of the Afghan national on condition of furnishing two surety bonds of Rs100,000 each. The petitioner was arrested by officials of the Saddar police station in Hangu district, on March 2, 2026, and charged under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act
On social media, a wave of videos recently exposed students using advanced gadgets to cheat in examinations. While the focus has been on policing misconduct, a deeper issue remains unexamined: students are not disengaging from education because of a lack of discipline, but because they increasingly question its value. For most students in Pakistan, particularly those enrolled in public institutions, education is not pursued for the love of knowledge – it is pursued as
AN HIV outbreak among children should have been a turning point for Taunsa’s main public hospital. Instead, an investigation by the BBC suggests that little has changed. Undercover footage from the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, filmed about eight months after the government’s crackdown in March 2025, shows syringes being reused, injections administered through clothing, and unqualified volunteers treating children with contaminated vials — each lapse a potential death sentence. HIV is not like any other infection. It is a lifelong,
KARACHI: Two more patients have tested positive for mpox — one in Karachi and the other in Khairpur — on April 14, raising the provincial tally to 25 with, nine deaths this year. Sources told Dawn that all the cases are being linked to local transmission. According to a statement released by the health department, a total of 122 suspected cases of mpox have been reported in the province this year so far. Of them, 25 patients have
KHANEWAL: The growing attacks of stray dogs in Khanewal and surrounding areas has left residents alarmed after two children were severely injured in an incident, with one shifted to Multan in critical condition. The incident occurred in Nanakpur village where two boys eight-year-old Abdul Hannan and ten-year-old Shahzaib were on their way to a grocery shop when a pack of stray dogs attacked them in the street, mauling them badly. Both children were rushed
THE Punjab Assembly’s committee approval of the Child Marriage Restraint Bill, 2026, is a welcome and necessary step. By setting 18 as the minimum legal age for marriage for both genders, the province moves to correct a long-standing imbalance and protect children from a practice that has scarred generations. The bill must now be passed by the full assembly before the ordinance lapses. Early marriage is not a harmless custom; it has serious, lasting
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Health Mustafa Kamal on April 14 said resistance against vaccines could not be mitigated despite spending tens of millions of dollars by Unicef. The minister stated this while chairing a meeting which reviewed the expenditures and measurable impact of the ongoing vaccination awareness campaigns. During a briefing, the minister expressed concern over the limited effectiveness of large-scale investments of millions of dollars made in vaccine awareness initiatives supported by Unicef.
PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on April 14 reviewed progress on educational reforms, establishment of virtual schools and the introduction of artificial intelligence-based teaching systems across the province. An official handout said that he chaired a meeting of the Elementary and Secondary Education Department. The meeting was briefed on the government initiative to establish Pakistan’s first public sector virtual school and launch an AI Teacher programme as part of a transformative strategy
LAHORE: The Digital Rights Foundation (DRF) has warned of a sharp rise in cyber harassment cases, particularly involving minors, alongside persistent barriers to justice. It released its 2025 annual report on its digital security helpline and highlighted growing online safety risks across the country. According to the report, the helpline received 3,012 complaints in 2025, besides 776 follow-ups, averaging around 250 cases per month. Of these, 2,586 were related to cyber harassment, bringing the