Islamabad, Jan 25 (IANS) As many as 3,995 registered HIV-positive children in Pakistan’s Sindh, and more than 100 new cases reported in Karachi in 2025, expose systemic failure of infection control and regulation, a report has stated.

Nearly 4,000 children in Sindh living with HIV, many of them not infected at birth or through personal behaviour but in healthcare facilities where patients undergo treatment, making negligence a crime, according to a report in Pakistan’s leading daily, The Express Tribune.

The Express Tribune report stated, “The Pakistan Medical Association’s (PMA) ‘high-level alert’ on the alarming rise in paediatric HIV cases should jolt authorities out of their habitual inertia. The numbers alone are damning: 3,995 registered HIV-positive children in Sindh and over 100 new cases reported in Karachi in 2025. These numbers point to a systemic collapse of infection control and regulation.”

This is not the first warning for Pakistan, as the 2019 Ratodero tragedy, where hundreds of children were infected, was considered to be a turning point, triggering investigation and promises of reform. However, six years later, PMA is compelled to reveal the rising number of HIV cases among children.

The report in The Express Tribune said, “What makes this crisis particularly disturbing is that it is largely preventable. Unsafe injections, reused syringes, unregulated blood banks and illegal clinics run by quacks continue to operate with impunity. Inability — or unwillingness — to enforce minimum standards has turned clinics into sites of contagion. The PMA rightly warns that this is no longer just a medical emergency but a socio-economic catastrophe in the making.”

In December last year, another report stated that the deepening HIV crisis in Pakistan is not only a medical emergency but also demonstrates institutional rot and showcases the consequences of years of neglect, the failure to implement basic health standards and the human cost of corruption. According to regional data, Pakistan, with a sharp increase in HIV cases, is ranked second among nations in the Asia-Pacific, a report has stated.

The shocking statistics highlight the use of contaminated syringes, unregulated blood transfusions, fake doctors and violations of medical rules. Health officials have reported 3,995 registered HIV-positive children in Sindh, a figure that only represents documented cases, according to a report in European Times.

According to the data, more than 600,000 fake doctors practise in Pakistan, with 40 per cent of them based in Karachi. The figure demonstrates the deepening medical malpractice crisis in Pakistan. With insufficient oversight, these fake doctors operate freely, reusing syringes, mishandling blood, and conducting unsafe procedures that further increase the spread of HIV.

“Pakistan’s healthcare system, long burdened by underfunding and mismanagement, has repeatedly failed to uphold global standard operating procedures (SOPs) for infection prevention and control. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and UNAIDS have established clear protocols for safe blood transfusions, syringe disposal, and patient management,” the European Times report stated.

The few HIV treatment centres that are present in Pakistan face shortages of testing kits, antiretroviral medicines, and trained staff, resulting in diagnosis and treatment delays. Patients often suffer as they have to move from one hospital to another in search of basic care.

“Pakistan’s deepening HIV crisis is more than a medical emergency; it is a reflection of institutional rot. It exposes the consequences of years of neglect, the failure to enforce basic health standards, and the human cost of corruption. The tragedy of nearly 4,000 HIV-positive children in Sindh, the epidemic of quack doctors, and the routine use of contaminated medical tools together form a damning indictment of the state’s indifference. This is not a story of a virus spreading silently; it is a story of systemic failure that allows the virus to thrive,” the report added.

–IANS

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