In Pakistan, the crisis of child labour continues to rob millions of children of their childhood, education, and dignity. Driven by entrenched poverty and a lack of accessible education, families often see no option but to send their children to work—sometimes in dangerous and exploitative conditions.
While laws exist on paper to curb the practice, enforcement remains weak, and practical alternatives for vulnerable families are few and far between. To truly protect the rights of children, the country needs more than legislation—it needs bold, sustained action across all levels of society. Child labour remains one of Pakistan’s most persistent and heartbreaking challenges, deeply woven into the fabric of everyday life. From fields and factories to markets and households, countless children are forced to work from a young age—robbed of their right to an education and a chance at a better future. The root of this crisis lies in widespread poverty, which pushes families to rely on their children’s income for survival.
The Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC), on the occasion of the World Day Against Child Labour, issued a strong call for urgent and unified action. Their message is clear: Pakistan must strengthen the enforcement of child protection laws, expand educational access, and address the systemic issues that drive children into labour in the first place.
One of the biggest obstacles to solving the problem is the lack of up-to-date data. The last nationwide child labour survey was conducted nearly three decades ago, in 1996, when around 3.3 million children were estimated to be working. Since then, estimates from organizations like the ILO and UNICEF suggest that the number may now range between 10 to 12 million—most of them employed in informal sectors where labour laws are rarely enforced.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the only province to have recently carried out a detailed child labour survey. It revealed that out of 8.2 million children, more than 745,000 are working. Other provinces and the federal government have yet to follow suit, leaving significant gaps in knowledge and hindering effective policy responses.
One of the most hidden and disturbing forms of child labour is domestic work. SPARC estimates that at least 264,000 children are employed in homes across the country. Behind closed doors, these children are particularly vulnerable to exploitation and abuse, with little to no oversight or protection.
Child labour also runs deep through the supply chains of major industries—brick kilns, textile factories, agriculture, construction, and even service jobs rely heavily on underage workers. These children are often exposed to dangerous conditions that endanger their health and strip them of a normal childhood.
This year’s World Day Against Child Labour focused on the urgent need to eliminate child labour from supply chains. It serves as a sobering reminder that meaningful change requires more than just laws—it calls for collective responsibility from the government, private sector, and society as a whole. Only through sustained, collaborative efforts can we hope to end this cycle of exploitation and give every child in Pakistan the chance to grow, learn, and thrive.
At the root of Pakistan’s child labour crisis is a harsh reality: deep-seated poverty and a lack of access to quality education leave many families with few choices. For millions living hand-to-mouth, sending their children to work isn’t a choice—it’s a survival strategy. But this grim compromise only tightens the grip of poverty, denying children the opportunity to learn, grow, and break free from the cycle. Weak social safety nets offer little relief, often forcing parents to depend on their children’s earnings just to make ends meet.
While some provincial governments have introduced legislation aimed at curbing child labour—like Punjab’s restriction on child workers at brick kilns and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s ban on employing children under 14—enforcement remains a significant hurdle. A lack of institutional capacity, inadequate resources, and the sheer scale of the issue continue to undermine these efforts.
One of the most glaring gaps is the absence of a realistic, compassionate path that allows working children to leave hazardous labour behind without plunging their families into deeper hardship. SPARC’s proposal to set up education centres at brick kilns in Sindh offers a promising model. If scaled nationwide and made mandatory, initiatives like this could offer a lifeline—enabling children to learn while easing the burden on families.
However, these steps alone are not enough. Real progress demands more than laws on paper. It requires a comprehensive approach: equipping labour departments and law enforcement agencies to take action against exploitative employers, creating strong social protection programmes that support families, and challenging the societal norms that continue to accept child labour as inevitable.
True change will only come through sustained, united action—from policymakers and employers to educators, communities, and citizens. The fight to end child labour isn’t just a legal or economic challenge—it’s a moral one. And it’s a fight that must be won for the sake of Pakistan’s children and the country’s future.
Ending child labour in Pakistan is not an impossible task—but it requires a serious, long-term commitment. Laws must be backed by action, institutions need proper support, and families must be empowered through stronger social protections and access to education. Above all, society must reject the normalization of child labour and view it for what it is: a violation of basic human rights. Only through coordinated efforts—from government and civil society to local communities and industry—can we create a future where every child is in school, not at work.