Federal Budget: Danyal for greater allocation of resources for children

ISLAMABAD: Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Information and Broadcasting Barrister Danyal Chaudhry has called for greater allocation of resources for children in the upcoming federal budget, noting that despite making up more than 40 percent of Pakistan’s population, investment in child-focused sectors remains significantly low.

Speaking at a pre-budget roundtable organised by UNICEF in collaboration with the SDGs Secretariat and SDPI, he highlighted key fiscal trends, stating that while social protection spending rose by 20.7 percent in FY2025–26 due to BISP, education allocations saw only marginal growth, and health funding declined from Rs 52.13 billion to Rs 31.97 billion.

He noted that Pakistan spends just 0.9 percent of GDP on health, far below the WHO-recommended 5 percent, while education spending remains well under UNESCO’s 4–6 percent benchmark.

The roundtable discussed challenges and opportunities for child-focused social sector investments for FY2026–27, emphasising better use of development funds, improved budget prioritization, and innovative financing mechanisms to address issues such as learning poverty and child stunting. Barrister Danyal also stressed the need for Parliament to play a proactive role in shaping and monitoring child-focused spending while ensuring transparent communication of budget deliberations to the public.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026