A major national report jointly released by the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) and UNICEF has revealed that approximately 8.6 million children in Pakistan are engaged in child labour, with more than 6.6 million involved in hazardous work that poses serious risks to their health, safety, and future. Titled “Pakistan: Child Labour Surveys – Evidence for Action,” the report provides the first nationally representative dataset on child labour in nearly three decades. It offers a comprehensive overview of the scale, prevalence, sectors, risks, and underlying causes of child labour across the country. Speaking at the launch event, NCHR Chairperson Rabia Javeri Agha noted that Pakistan’s last comprehensive child labour survey was conducted in 1996, forcing policymakers and development partners to rely on outdated or incomplete data for more than two decades. While child labour rates vary across provinces, she emphasized that hazardous child labour remains a widespread and alarming issue affecting children throughout the country. According to the report, Punjab bears the highest burden, with around 6 million children engaged in labour. Sindh follows with 1.6 million child labourers, while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa accounts for 745,155 children, Balochistan for 201,352, and Islamabad Capital Territory for 15,180 children involved in labour. The report identifies poverty as the primary driver of child labour, with the highest prevalence found among children from low-income households and families with limited educational attainment. Boys are significantly more likely than girls to be involved in labour, particularly hazardous work. A large proportion of child labour takes place within family settings, including family farms, workshops, and households, making it difficult for conventional labour inspection and monitoring systems to detect and address.
NCHR to reveal child labour survey
Published on: June 19, 2026 9:31 AM