ISLAMABAD: Pakistan plans to mobilise one million young people as community volunteers to help address some of the country’s most pressing social challenges, including low literacy, child malnutrition and the large number of children who remain out of school.
According to Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, who announced the initiative during an event in Islamabad, the proposed nationwide programme aims to harness Pakistan’s young population to support government efforts on education, public health and community development by engaging young people as “social mobilisers” at the grassroots level.
Volunteers to work at grassroots level
Under the proposed programme, young Pakistanis will work within their communities to encourage behavioural change and help connect national development priorities with people at the local level.
The volunteers are expected to assist efforts to enrol out-of-school children, raise awareness about health and nutrition and encourage healthier lifestyles. They will also campaign against drug and tobacco use and participate in environmental activities, including tree-planting drives.
The government sees the initiative as a way of using Pakistan’s large youth population to supplement existing efforts to address longstanding development challenges.
Millions of children remain out of school
Pakistan faces significant challenges in improving education and child health. According to UNICEF, an estimated 25.1 million children aged five to 16 are out of school, giving Pakistan one of the world’s largest populations of school-age children without access to formal education.
The country also faces a serious child nutrition problem. World Bank estimates indicate that around 40% of children under the age of five suffer from stunted growth, a condition associated with chronic malnutrition and which can have long-term effects on physical and cognitive development.
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At the same time, Pakistan has a particularly young population. Nearly one-third of the country’s estimated 257 million people are aged between 10 and 24, according to the UN Population Fund. The government hopes to channel this demographic strength into community-level action through the proposed volunteer network.
Launch planned for November 9
Ahsan Iqbal said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected to formally launch the programme on November 9, which is observed in Pakistan as Iqbal Day. However, the government has yet to disclose key operational details. “The real key to our progress lies in the hands of our youth,” the minister said.
It remains unclear how the one million participants will be recruited and trained, whether they will receive financial compensation or serve entirely as volunteers, and what budget will be allocated to the initiative. The government has also not yet outlined specific mechanisms for monitoring the programme or measuring its impact.
If implemented nationwide, the initiative could create one of Pakistan’s largest organised youth-led community mobilisation efforts, with its success likely to depend on effective training, coordination, funding and measurable targets.
