PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa health minister Taimur Khan Jhagra has announced that the provincial government will make the Khyber Institute of Child Health fully functional within six months despite the non-provision of the promised funds by the federal government.

“The centre is not willing to release funds for this [KICH] project but even then, we [provincial government] will complete it by next June,” the minister told a Universal Children’s Day function here.

The event was held by the Pakistan Paediatrics Association (PPA) in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) at the KICH, Hayatabad Township, which is currently partially functional.

Senior doctors, who were also in attendance, voiced concern about a long delay in the institute’s full operationalisation despite its approval by the federal government in 2008.

Minister claims centre not providing funds

Mr Jhagra declared children the nation’s future and called for their development by improving immunisation and reducing malnourishment.

He said the government had adopted different strategies to control population growth, reduce infant and child mortality rates, and check stunting.

“We operationalised the Peshawar Institute of Cardiology after it remained in limbo for 15 years. Now, it has become a state-of-art institute,” he said.

The minister, who also holds the portfolio of finance, said under the PTI’s flagship Sehat Card Plus programme, the government was offering free treatment worth of Rs1 million to every family in the province.

Earlier, former head of the child health department at the Khyber Medical College Prof Abdul Hameed, who had designed the KICH, said governance in any country could be judged by the protection of the children’s rights.

“If the situation regarding child rights is satisfactory, then the governance is good, but it will be bad if the children are denied rights,” he said.

Prof Abdul Hameed said children had the right to survival, development, protection and participation, but 90 per cent of Pakistani children died before reaching the age of five years and 75 per cent lost life within a year of their birth.

He said 50 per cent of the children were malnourished and more than 60 per cent of the children weren’t fully immunised, so they’re exposed to a host of diseases, which could impact their learning capabilities.

The expert said political uncertainty in the country had threatened the KICH project, so 17 million children in the province would suffer.

He said the institute was to lead efforts for the children’s health in the province.

“A data bank will be established to help with policymaking and research on children’s health,” he said.

Unicef representative Dr Inamullah Khan said the Universal Children’s Day was marked to remind people of the children’s rights. He said measures were required to address neonatal mortality and low immunisation rate and malnutrition in children.

KICH project director Prof Inayatur Rehman said all provinces except Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had full-fledged children’s hospitals.

He said KP didn’t have a single fully functional children’s hospital even 15 years after the approval of the KICH project.

Prof Rehman said the institute carried out training, teaching and research activities.

“Currently, 350 students are undergoing training in different disciplines to help improve children’s health in the province,” he said.

The KICH project director said a lack of funds had enhanced the project’s cost, so the government was requested to provide adequate funding to prevent a further delay in the institute’s full operationalisation.

Former principal of the Khyber Medical College Prof Ashfaq Ahmad Khan, who was also in attendance, said the promotion of children’s rights was imperative for the country’s better future, so all of them should be immunised against diseases for better health.

Special secretary of the health department Abidullah Kakakhel, PPA president Prof Mohammad Hussain and general secretary Dr Gohar Amin and focal person for immunisation in the province Prof Sabir Khan were also present on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, November 20th, 2022