Pakistan is in the spotlight for having the largest number of out-of-school children (26 million) and millions not learning the basics (ASER 2010-2023). Deficits in access and quality morph into an equity gap with gender and generational impacts. The Prime Minister of Pakistan, within nine weeks of stepping into office, declared a National Education Emergency (May 8, 2024), followed by 14 time-bound directives through the mobilization of the ministries of Finance, Health, and Poverty
Child Rights in Focus
A child in Zhob district of Balochistan whose parents had refused to get him vaccinated against polio, bringing the total number of polio cases in 2024 to nine in Pakistan, Pakistan’s Polio Eradication Initiative (PEI) officials said on 20 July 2024. “An 18-month-old male child from Union Council Hassan Zai Urban 2 in Zhob district, Balochistan, has been paralysed by poliovirus. Preliminary investigation revealed that the child did not receive any dose of Oral
The parents of Priya Kumari, who had gone missing at the age of seven years in Sukkur on August 19, 2021, held a sit-in outside the Sindh Chief Minister House on 20 July 2024, following which a government delegation met the girl’s family and assured them of full cooperation. The delegation comprised Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar, and Pakistan Peoples Party MPAs Mukesh Kumar Chawla, Lal Chand Ukrani, and Sham Sunder Advani. Civil society
Islamabad: In a significant effort to reduce electricity costs and promote sustainability, the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training has announced a plan to convert 100 primary schools to solar energy in the next two months. The initiative is part of a larger effort to harness renewable energy sources and reduce the city’s carbon footprint. “This project will not only reduce electricity costs but also provide a clean and sustainable source of energy
HYDERABAD: HRCP Coordinator for Hyderabad Ghufrana Arian, while opening a session on 19 July, said that 40 incidents of sexual assaults on children have been reported in Sindh in the last three months, and victims include 15 minor girls and 25 minor boys. Talking to the participants of the meeting, she said that the purpose of today’s session is to mobilize civil society, human rights defenders, volunteers of the relevant government departments, lawyers, and
Police on Saturday apprehended a man accused of attempting to assault a child in Sherpao Colony, located within the jurisdiction of the Quiadabad police station in District Malir. The incident came to light when a minor girl was found in a gunny bag. Police responded, managing to arrest the suspect, identified as Javed, son of Mumtaz, and a resident of Sherpao Colony, within an hour of the girl’s discovery. Initial reports suggested that Javed’s
A family court has awarded permanent custody of a teenage girl who was reported kidnapped from Karachi in April 2022 but was later found to have purportedly contracted freewill marriage in Lahore, to her parents. Judge Salamat Ali Soomro granted an application filed by the girl’s parents — Syed Mehdi Ali Kazmi and Saima Kazmi — seeking her permanent custody. He directed them to submit a surety of Rs2 million along with an undertaking
ISLAMABAD: Another child has been paralyzed by polio in the Zhob district of Balochistan, bringing this year’s total number of polio cases to nine. Additionally, sewage samples from one new district, Hangu, and six previously infected districts have tested positive for wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1). With the latest addition, the number of districts where poliovirus has been found in environmental samples has jumped to 51. This development comes shortly after Pakistan’s health team
KARACHI: Almost a year after the Council of Common Interests (CCI) ‘unanimously’ approved the results of the 2023 digital census, the country’s top data body has released detailed results of the enumeration exercise. The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) released data for the 7th Population and Housing Census 2023 at an event in Islamabad on 18 July 2024. The district-level data included information on various demographics and metrics, including population, gender, age, religion, language,
ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training on 19 July 2024 notified curriculum for Information Communication Technology (ICT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), which will be taught from grades 1 to 5 in all public and private primary schools of the capital. According to the education ministry, this curriculum will enable students to develop a strong foundation in IT and AI. It will also help them stay ahead of the curve in a
LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on 19 July 2024 heard a petition of an Indian Muslim woman seeking custody of her two minor sons from the alleged illegal custody of their Pakistani father. Petitioner Farzana Begum appeared before the court along with her lawyer Bushra Qamar. The lawyer told the court that the petitioner contracted marriage with Yousaf Elahi Mirza of Lahore in 2015 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). From this marriage, she
LAHORE: A man stabbed to death his wife and teenage daughter in the Defence locality on 19 July 2024. Mohabat Khan reportedly was annoyed at a domestic dispute and killed his 18-year-old daughter Samiya and 45-year-old wife Shahnaz with a knife. Noticing the screams, locals of Alfalah Town alerted police and a Dolphin Squad team reached the spot and arrested the accused with the weapon. Published in News Daily on 20 July 2024.