Recognising child marriage

Legal inconsistencies are wrought in the country's legal framework, as minimum legal age for marriage is not uniform

A sessions court in Karachi last week found an adult, who had married a minor, guilty under the Sindh Child Marriage Restraint Act 2013, sentencing him to two years in prison alongside a Rs25,000 fine. The court, however, declared that convictions under the Act do not nullify the validity of a nikkah involving a minor. In Sindh, the minimum legal age for marriage for both males and females is 18. This means that while an adult can be prosecuted for marrying a minor, the marriage itself remains valid.

This legal inconsistency has previously been questioned by the Islamabad High Court, which found it nonsensical to recognise a child marriage as a valid contract. It argued that since the marriage with an underage child constitutes an illegal criminal offence — statutory rape under the Pakistan Penal Code — the contract should be void. Consequently, the Islamabad Capital Territory Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2025 prohibits cohabitation resulting from a child marriage.

While a criminal court only extends its jurisdiction to criminal offences, and the right to recognise or nullify a marriage rests with family courts, this ruling fails to recognise legal inconsistencies between criminalisation and continued legal recognition. Criminal punishment then risks becoming symbolic, avoiding a conclusive legal position on whether the state supports marriage under 18. Nor does the ruling meaningfully guide family courts on assessing a nikah's validity following a conviction.

Legal inconsistencies are wrought in the country's legal framework, as the minimum legal age for marriage is not uniform across different provinces. Balochistan and K-P recognise 18 as the minimum age for males and 16 for females, while the rest of the country recognises 18 for both sexes. Legal rulings surrounding child marriage are desperately in need of clarity that ultimately protects the well-being of children and reduces harm to minors.

Work from jail

Proposal by the Inspector General of Jails in Sindh to introduce a 'work from jail' model

The proposal by the Inspector General of Jails in Sindh to introduce a 'work from jail' model, which would train inmates and engage them in productive labour while they serve their sentences, is a welcome shift in correctional policy and prison reforms. The idea positions jails as spaces for rehabilitation rather than solely punishment as the latter approach makes it difficult for prisoners to reintegrate into society after they serve their sentences.

Under this scheme, prisoners would receive market-relevant training, access modern machinery and tools and undertake real industrial projects by collaborating with private sector partners. The stated aim is to reduce recidivism and prepare inmates for a future where they can be skilled, employable citizens. This approach also aligns with a broader recognition that punitive confinement on its own fails to break the cycle of crime. Sindh has already taken other corrective steps in recent times, including vocational and technical training for juvenile inmates. Such programmes acknowledge that equipping offenders with education and skills is central to reducing re-offences and helping them lead productive lives post-release.

However, the gap between policy intention and practical implementation remains a serious concern. Currently, Central Jail Karachi houses more than double the number of inmates that the facility has space for, and the living conditions of inmates are close to dire. Announcements of progressive reforms can only be applauded once they are matched by genuine, sustained commitment on the ground. Too often, ideas fail because of lack of funding, weak oversight or poor coordination between government departments and private partners.

Unless the government backs this 'work from jail' initiative with focused implementation and adequate budgets that are monitored with transparency, the idea risks turning into another well-intended slogan. Sindh must treat rehabilitation as a priority, not an afterthought, and back it with long-term vision.

Trapped at kitchen table

Pakistan's economic crisis: survival takes precedence as food, housing, utilities consume 63% of income

When households are forced to spend two-thirds of their income on food and electricity, the economy is no longer about growth. It is about survival. The latest Household Integrated Economic Survey confirms that living in Pakistan has become an exercise merely in staying afloat.

Food alone now absorbs more than a third of household spending. Another quarter goes into housing, electricity and gas. Together, these basic needs consume 63% of total expenditure. This is the direct result of prolonged inflation and policy choices that have steadily raised the cost of essentials. Incomes have risen on paper. They have not kept pace in reality. While average monthly earnings have increased over the past six years, household spending has risen faster. What families gain in nominal income is eroded by higher prices.

The purchasing power of the rupee continues to shrink. The real damage shows up in what households can no longer afford. Spending on education has dropped to just 2.5%. It is now less than half the cost of housing and utilities. Health and recreation together make up barely a few percentage points. A society that cuts back on learning and well-being is paying for stability today by mortgaging its future.

This is not resilience. It is fragility disguised as coping. What can be done? First, stabilising the cost of food and power must become an economic priority, not an afterthought. Second, inflation control must move beyond interest rates. Supply-side failures in food markets need fixing. And third, education and health spending need insulation from economic shocks. Household budgets are under siege. If policy continues to treat survival as an acceptable equilibrium, the long-term costs will be far greater than today's fiscal discomfort.

The fall of Maduro

Trump’s move in Venezuela risks fueling anti-US sentiments, destabilising the region

Washington's aggression over Caracas is a daredevil episode of violation of national sovereignty. President Donald Trump took a departure from his vision of non-intervention in others' affairs as he abducted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, in an operation that the US attorney claimed to be 'lawful'. The charges against the deposed president include narco-terrorism, cocaine importation and conspiracy to possess destructive weapons against the US.

The assault was uncalled for under the canons of International Law, and seems to have united a politically divisive Venezuelan society that nursed severe grievances against Maduro, as he stands blamed for manipulating the 2024 elections. This interposition in Latin America has refreshed the sordid memories of the invasion of Panama in 1989, carried out under the edicts of the Monroe Doctrine that opened vistas of gunboat diplomacy.

Trump's impulsive personality and his quest for assertiveness seem to have come full circle with this Venezuelan misadventure. It has left a bitter taste and will come to ruin the incumbent's so-called reconciliation efforts in Ukraine and the Middle East. Moreover, with South America once again on the US radar, it will breed radicalism in the region, providing impetus to anti-US sentiments throughout the world.

The belligerence dubbed as "brilliant" by the White House coincided with a judgmental 'X' post from the Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who wrote: "Maduro is not the President of Venezuela and his regime is not the legitimate government." This is nothing but a negation of the values the US cherished recently under NSS 2025, promising to stay away from influencing foreign governments.

While Venezuela has called for an emergent UNSC meeting over "criminal aggression committed by the US government", there are not many serious listeners, though. The opposition under Nobel laureate Maria Corina Machado has refused to comment, and regional states are apparently in a state of shock and awe. For many, it is a déjà vu of America coming to rule their homeland through force and dictation. Colombian President Gustavo Petro is on the spot, expressing fears of a humanitarian crisis, resulting in more lawlessness and chaos.

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Education crisis

The recent Household Integrated Economic Survey reveals how far Pakistan still lags in terms of education. While some people would proclaim success by noting that the national literacy rate has inched upward to 63% and enrolment is also up, the figures are still among the worst in the world. Meanwhile, some 20 million children — or 28% of student-age kids — are not even enrolled in schools. This is nothing short of a national emergency, failure to address which will make it impossible for the country to ever truly shine.

The education statistics also reflect profound inequalities in society. The crisis is clearly gendered, with nearly one in three girls excluded compared to one in four boys. Geographically, 45% of children in Balochistan and 39% in Sindh are out of school, compared to 21% in Punjab, and even the figure for Punjab is atrocious in a global context. Shockingly, 1 in 5 children have never even been inside a classroom, while the other 8% dropped out, mostly for economic reasons, the blame for which often tracks back to other problematic government policies, such as austerity. The same survey also shows there has been a dramatic spike in food insecurity. A hungry child cannot learn, and a family in survival mode cannot prioritise education.

Also notable is the fact that education spending is now less than 1% of GDP. The only way to address this problem quickly is to heavily invest in measures such as direct financial support to students that could encourage poor families to keep their children in school, a massive scaling-up of alternative learning pathways and a massive spike in the education budget for primary and secondary education, rather than higher education, which can be open to abuse as a virtual subsidy for students from wealthier backgrounds and the professors and owners of universities.

Every child out of school is a failure of the state, and given the amount of blame there is to go around, the provinces would be well advised to put their differences aside and work on holistic national-level solutions, rather than just localised ones.

C-section surge

It has saved millions of lives by intervening when childbirth turns perilous

The Caesarean section is one of modern medicine's undeniable triumphs. It has saved millions of lives by intervening when childbirth turns perilous. Yet, like many medical advances, its misuse can hollow out its original purpose. In Pakistan, the C-section increasingly appears less as a life-saving last resort and more as a routinised, even commercialised, mode of delivery.

Global health standards are unambiguous. WHO has long held that Caesarean deliveries should not exceed 10–15% of total births, as higher rates show no corresponding improvement in maternal or neonatal outcomes. Pakistan, however, has drifted far beyond this threshold. In some hospitals - particularly private ones - C-section rates hover between 50% and 70%. The reasons are neither hidden nor complex.

Caesarean surgeries are predictable, faster and more convenient for doctors juggling overwhelming caseloads. They reduce the uncertainties of prolonged labour and, in private settings, offer significantly higher financial returns. But convenience and commerce cannot be allowed to override clinical judgment.

C-section deliveries carry substantial risks. Normal delivery, when medically feasible, remains the safer option for both mother and child. Even more alarming is the absence of credible, centralised data. In Sindh, the financial burden of these procedures strains already under-resourced public hospitals. In Punjab, private hospitals recorded over half a million C-section surgeries between 2017 and 2024, with numbers surging further thereafter. Between 2016 and 2024, Rs16.36 billion was paid out in claims for C-section births.

Yet the blame cannot rest solely with hospitals or doctors. Structural deficiencies have created conditions where surgical births become the path of least resistance. In this vacuum, informed consent often collapses into psychological coercion, with women frightened into surgery under the guise of safety or convenience. What is urgently required is a multi-pronged response, which includes mandatory reporting of delivery data and stricter enforcement of clinical and international guidelines.

Beyond the thumbprint

Broader biometric recognition marks a structural shift in Pakistan’s digital state

For years, Pakistan's digital governance architecture has been held hostage by a stubborn over-reliance on a single, fallible biometric marker on the other. The federal government's decision to amend the National Identity Card Rules to legally recognise facial and iris scans — alongside fingerprints — marks a long-overdue correction to this imbalance.

This is a major structural reform that is not just welcomed but also signals a more humane approach to digital identity. Its phased rollout — already covering vehicle transfers and online passport applications, and with time, proof-of-life certificates for federal pensioners — shows administrative intent. Regulation that has finally caught up with technological possibility, it seems. That said, the success of this reform will hinge less on Nadra's readiness — which it claims to have ensured — and more on the willingness and capacity of public and private institutions to adapt. Banks, telecom operators, housing authorities and other service providers have historically been slow, if not reluctant, to upgrade hardware and software unless compelled to do so. Nadra's call for regulators and institutions to progressively align their systems is therefore prudent.

The two-phase upgrade plan — first software integration and then camera installation or KYC machine enhancement — must not become another bureaucratic excuse for delay. If institutions fail to comply, the burden will once again fall on citizens, who may find themselves shuttling between service providers and Nadra centres despite the reform's stated objective of convenience.

Ultimately, the expansion of biometric definitions will be the true litmus test of whether Pakistan's digital state can be inclusive as well as efficient. If implemented in letter and spirit, the move could finally retire the tyranny of the thumbprint and restore dignity to millions who have been systemically inconvenienced by a narrow conception of identity. That would be a fitting way to begin the year.

The tax lacunae

FBR misses targets again, raising fears of fresh indirect taxes on an already strained middle class

The tax machinery, whose laxity is an undeniable truth, has once again failed to meet the revenue collection target for the first half of the ongoing fiscal year. The FBR has missed the target by Rs330 billion, despite taking a leap on the last day of the outgoing calendar year by netting a staggering Rs391 billion. It is ironic to note that the original shortfall was around Rs545 billion, as it pooled Rs6.16 trillion during the July-December period. That has led to speculations of a mini-budget specifically targeting business in solar panels, mobile phones and bank account holders. In other words, commoners and the enterprising middle class will have to pay for the inefficiency of babus.

It is, moreover, distressing to note that the government, rather than reprimanding the tax sleuths, has assured the IMF that it will, somehow, collect Rs200 billion in additional indirect taxation to make up for the slippages. The brunt again will fall on the common man. The back-up measure reportedly includes increasing the withholding tax on cash withdrawals to 1.5% — an increase of almost 100%.

The sordid collection equation can be judged from the fact that the Fund had slashed Rs214 billion in revenue collection to adjust the impact of the depreciation in growth and the devastating floods. Yet the FBR was found ducking. It paid 47% fewer refunds in December compared to a year ago, accounting for a monthly shortfall of Rs20 billion. Last but not least, an attempt to scrutinise the loss-laden exporters on their tax returns on suspicion of under-invoicing has not gone well with the business community.

The way forward is to overhaul the tax bureau and carry out reforms. The Prime Minister's assurance to address vulnerabilities identified by the IMF in its Governance and Corruption report is a promising move. The proposed 142-point agenda for institutional building and rule of law must see the light of day to avoid a repeat of Rs5.3 trillion embezzlement, as pointed out by the Fund against recoveries made by NAB. Digitising the economy and holding tax collectors to account are indispensable measures.

Navigating 2026

Pakistan's growth optimistically projected at 3.2% for current fiscal year, structural deficits highlighted by IMF

Pakistan enters 2026 at a critical juncture, with several challenges converging to test the resilience of the country's leaders and ordinary citizens alike. But while the path forward is fraught with difficulty, a clear-eyed assessment reveals that it also leads to wide avenues for stability and progress.

The welcome economic stability of recent months remains fragile, as the country still depends on loans and foreign assistance rather than a significant domestic economic turnaround. Foreign exchange reserves are currently about $14.5 billion, but this has been fueled mainly by foreign aid rather than by outstanding export performance. However, growth is projected at 3.2% for the current financial year, and there has been optimism about the industrial sector's performance. But deep-seated structural issues identified by the IMF and local economic experts still threaten to erode the already weak ground on which the economy is built, and the government's limited ability to stimulate economic activity is still hampered by the billions that are flushed down the drain every day on account of state-owned basket cases. Expansion of the tax base remains an expert example of eyewash, as ambitious claims continue to peter out as the year progresses. The coming years require consistent implementation of transparent reforms to build fiscal credibility and diversify investment.

It is also widely agreed that economic success requires political stability, but despite leading a relatively strong coalition government, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's tenure has been anything but stable. Although agitation on the streets by the PTI has been relatively limited — never rising to the level of protests that were led by imprisoned party founder and former prime minister Imran Khan — the sustained pressure has been enough to worry many investors and create hurdles for people in several cities, especially because the government appears to regularly miss the balance between allowing peaceful protest and promptly shutting down violent ones.

On the security front, the threat of terrorism persists, as religious extremists such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and Daesh elements continue to be active in the country, while Baloch separatist terrorists have shown no sign of slowing down, in an asymmetrical conflict that has gone on for longer than most Pakistanis have been alive. Analysts are also concerned that despite improving ties with the US and a defence pact with Saudi Arabia, there is still a "moderate likelihood" of armed conflict with India, which increasingly finds itself surrounded by countries that its bigoted far-right government sees as adversaries — most recently Bangladesh.

While foreign security experts have often presented solutions such as cross-border working groups against terrorism and increased diplomatic exchanges, the Indian government — at least publicly — has literally positioned itself as not wanting to even let its citizens shake hands with Pakistanis. This belligerent and combative attitude to international relations is why, despite all the other conflicts in the world, New Delhi is the reason most people worried about nuclear war have sleepless nights.

As for public health, Pakistan is again on the brink of being declared polio-free, but the Global Polio Eradication Initiative has noted that there is a funding gap of almost $2 billion, making it almost certain that Pakistan and Afghanistan will have to self-finance vaccination and awareness initiatives or risk falling short again with the finish line in sight.

The choices made in 2026 will thus define Pakistan's trajectory for years to come.

Politicising flood relief

In the face of one of the country's most devastating flood seasons, a public and unseemly war of words has erupted between the PPP and PML-N. Instead of presenting a united front to aid millions of affected citizens, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz have chosen to politicise relief efforts, and in the process, failing the very people they claim they are trying to help.

The core of this political conflict is not about the most effective mechanism for aid, but rather about claiming credit and asserting dominance. Bilawal has dogmatically insisted that the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) is the "sole method" for providing immediate relief, framing any rejection of it as an "irresponsible attitude" towards flood victims. But Maryam fairly questioned how a significantly large amount would be distributed through BISP when standard payments through the system are only about Rs10,000 - the Punjab CM wants to distribute 100 times that amount to flood victims.

On the other side, the CM's response has been equally partisan. Even if we take her at her word that BISP is a "very simplistic solution", several statements in her recent presser appeared to be sharp, unconstructive rebukes designed as sound bites for the evening news. In times like these, a good leader must put aside personal pride and do what is best for the country. Starving and sickly people at relief camps don't care if Maryam is holding her head high or begging for foreign aid. They just want some food, shelter and medicine.

And while BISP is not perfect, it is a readymade vehicle to distribute funds through. The only problem is how the name implies a connection with the PPP. This issue has come up previously as well, when PTI set up its Ehsaas Programme, which was essentially an upgraded BISP and has since been reabsorbed into the older programme. As a solution, the parliament could just change the name to something apolitical - simply dropping the 'B' would accomplish this. The PPP could still claim credit for setting up the programme, while opposition to such a plan would be a naked example of politicising poverty and aid.

Into the final

Pakistan secured their place in the Asia Cup final with a tense 11-run victory over Bangladesh in Dubai, setting up yet another high-stakes clash against India. While the result ensured progression, the manner of Pakistan's win showed areas of concern that cannot be ignored ahead of Sunday's final.

Defending a modest 135, Pakistan once again leaned on their pace attack to get the job done. Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf shared six wickets between them, striking at crucial stages to derail Bangladesh's chase. Their discipline under pressure was a reminder of Pakistan's traditional strength - fast bowling capable of turning matches even with limited runs to defend. It was yet again the batting that left much to be desired.

Pakistan's top order struggled to build momentum, and partnerships were few and far between. The inability to rotate strike or anchor the innings kept the total well below par. Against India, such batting displays could prove costly, as their deep and in-form batting line-up is unlikely to falter chasing modest targets. Going into the final, Pakistan face the added challenge of avoiding a hat-trick of defeats to India. More than just the Asia Cup title is at stake. The final is also a test of resilience and an opportunity to restore confidence before the T20 World Cup later this year.

Pakistan's senior batters need to take greater responsibility, ensuring partnerships that allow the side to reach competitive totals. The middle order, in particular, must find a way to adapt to conditions and accelerate when needed. The Green Shirts may have stumbled into the final, but the chance for redemption remains. If the lessons from the Bangladesh match are quickly absorbed, Sunday could be an opportunity to turn the tide.