Islamabad, May 9: Pakistan is grappling with a deepening HIV crisis, as more than 20,000 patients have gone “missing” after beginning antiretroviral therapy, raising alarm over uncontrolled transmission within communities.

According to an editorial in leading Pakistani daily, Pakistan has emerged as one of the fastest‑growing HIV hotspots in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region, which spans 22 countries across West Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, and Central Asia. Over the past 15 years, new infections have surged by 200 per cent, rising from 16,000 in 2010 to 48,000 in 2024.

The report highlighted that public awareness campaigns and harm‑reduction strategies have failed to deliver meaningful results. Of the 369,000 estimated people living with HIV nationwide, only 84,000 are registered, leaving a vast untreated population that complicates efforts to identify high‑risk groups.

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Unsafe sexual practices and intravenous drug use remain primary transmission routes, but unsafe medical practices - including unsterile injections, poor infection control, and unchecked quackery—are increasingly infecting children and spouses. Alarmingly, children are among the most affected, with new infections in the 0–14 age group rising from 530 in 2010 to 1,800 in 2023. In outbreak hotspots such as Larkana, Taunsa, and Hyderabad, children accounted for more than 80 per cent of new cases. Despite these outbreaks, banned reusable syringes remain available in markets, and blood bank regulation is inconsistent.

The National AIDS Control Programme, heavily reliant on external aid, is now severely underfunded and understaffed. Reports suggest $800,000 worth of donated supplies were stolen by corrupt local actors, further undermining the response.

An editorial described the situation as a “man‑made epidemic,” citing two converging failures: the collapse of basic infection control across large parts of the healthcare system and the persistence of syringe reuse despite a nationwide ban on conventional disposable syringes in 2021.

Experts warn that Pakistan’s HIV crisis is no longer a slow‑burning public health issue but a system failure unfolding in real time. With children and low‑risk individuals increasingly infected through healthcare channels, the epidemic underscores urgent gaps in governance, regulation, and medical safety.