Over 8.6 million children engaged in labour in Pakistan, report finds

More than 8.6 million children in Pakistan are engaged in child labour, including over 6.6 million in hazardous work, according to a national report launched by the National Commission for Human Rights in collaboration with UNICEF.

The report, titled Pakistan: Child Labour Surveys, Evidence for Action, provides the first nationally representative dataset on child labour in nearly three decades.

National Commission for Human Rights Chairperson Rabiya Javeri Agha said Pakistan’s last comprehensive child labour survey was conducted in 1996, leaving policymakers and development partners dependent on outdated and fragmented data for more than 20 years.

She said the prevalence of child labour differed across provinces, but hazardous child labour remained a nationwide concern.

According to the report, Punjab has the highest number of child labourers, with around 6 million children engaged in work.

Sindh has 1.6 million child labourers, followed by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa with 745,155, Balochistan with 201,352 and Islamabad Capital Territory with 15,180.

The report identifies poverty as the strongest driver of child labour. Children from the poorest households and families with low parental education are more likely to be affected.

It also found that boys are more likely than girls to be engaged in labour, including hazardous work.

A large share of child labour takes place within family settings, including farms, workshops and homes, making it difficult to detect through conventional labour inspection systems.

The report said working children are more likely to be out of school, work long hours and suffer injuries, illness, fatigue and poor mental health.

Across provinces, 32% to 58% of working children reported work-related injuries or illnesses, while up to one-third of older child labourers reported symptoms of depression.

Federal Minister for Human Rights Azam Nazeer Tarar said child labour could not be addressed through a single ministry or intervention. He said the findings showed that child labour was more widespread than commonly assumed and called for a reassessment of national priorities.