While the world sets its sight on mars, Pakistan is moving in a backward trajectory. The latest Human Development Index (HDI) ranking speaks volume. According to the 2025 HDI ranking, Pakistan has dropped 4 places to 168 out of 193 countries, landing in the “low human development” category.

HDI shows the socio-economic development of a nation with its three major indicators: health, education, and living standards. The lower ranking of HDI means that all the mentioned indicators are in bad condition. Overall, the low HDI translates into poor economic growth in the future. Sadly, Pakistan is flattering in all the three indicators.

How is a country supposed to develop when the coverage and quality of its education is below the threshold? Pakistan is one of the unfortunate countries where one-third of children are out of school — one of the highest figures globally, i.e., 26 million, and the number is burgeoning.

Despite the twice declaration of government of an education emergency in 2024, no practical steps are taken in this regard. The country only spent 0.8 percent of its GDP on education, which is lowest in the whole region.........

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