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ISLAMABAD: Reviewing the HIV situation in the country, the National Assembly Standing Committee on National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination on Friday raised concerns about lack of complete information in a report submitted by the health ministry.
The committee specifically noted that several requested details were missing, including HIV data from Balochistan.
The committee met under the chairmanship of Dr Mahesh Kumar Malani to examine health sector regulatory and policy matters. The meeting was informed that under the National Aids Programme about $300-500 per patient was spent annually though this was not reflected in the documentation shared.
Members said approximately 350,000 HIV patients had been reported from Sindh and Punjab, indicating an increase of around 75 per cent. Moreover, 20,000 new cases have been reported in 2018–19 and 9,700 in the first nine months of 2024.
The committee noted that 31 patients identified as HIV positive at Nishtar Hospital were not accompanied by information on treatment progress, and that data relating to 669 reported cases out of 5,000 in district Sargodha (Kot Momin) during 2018–19 was absent.
Moreover, 24,000 patients had been registered for treatment in 2019, while the minister clarified that at present only 84,000 individuals were under treatment for HIV. The committee said multiple aspects, including requested data and causal factors, were inadequately reflected in the ministry’s submission.
The minister for health clarified that these figures indicated that, following the ministry’s efforts to curb the issue by expanding testing centres from 24 to 127, more individuals had been reporting and getting tested, which resulted in higher case detection.
The minister stated that several positive steps had been taken during his tenure and should be reflected accordingly.
The committee sought a report on initiatives undertaken by the ministry during this period. The meeting was told that reported HIV cases were being tracked and that expansion of screening facilities had contributed to increased identification of cases.
The ministry indicated that nationwide screening and awareness measures were being pursued and that programme-related matters, including funding flows and oversight mechanisms, would be shared with the committee in subsequent briefings.
The committee directed that details regarding funding allocations to NGOs, programme implementation, including HIV-related matters and project-specific operational briefings, be presented in the next meeting.
It examined concerns regarding regulatory oversight and performance of healthcare authorities, including issues related to outdated information sharing and lack of progress reporting on clinical oversight and enforcement measures by the Islamabad Healthcare Regulatory Authority.
The ministry informed the committee that certain matters required time and development review, and members emphasised the need for comprehensive documentation and factual ground assessments in future submissions.
During discussion on the Pakistan Nursing and Midwifery Council (Ordinance 2025), the committee members raised concerns that, according to their sources, even in the newly-constituted council certain members from Gilgit-Baltistan and Balochistan possessed fake degrees and lacked required qualifications.
The ministry requested documentary evidence from members and indicated that a report would be shared for further consideration.
The committee deferred discussion on the ordinance till the next meeting.
It also discussed the ministry’s project implementation and programme utilisation across ongoing schemes under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP).
The meeting was attended by Zahra Wadood Fatemi, Farah Naz Akbar, Dr Shazia Sobia Aslam Soomro, Dr Nikhat Shakeel Khan, Aliya Kamran, Dr Darshan, Sabheen Ghoury and Dr Shaista Khan.
Published in Dawn, February 21st, 2026
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