The dreams we cannot afford

By Mahnoor Gul

A child’s dream should not only exist in imagination.

In some corners of our vast country, there is a child with the same dreams as us, with ambition as immense as ours and yet they are forced to let go of their passions. Somewhere in Balochistan, a girl folds her uniform never to open it again so she can learn how to sweep floors. Why? Education is a right, not a privilege so when a girl who hopes to become a doctor is forced into early marriage she is deprived of her rights. When a boy dreams of becoming an engineer ends up working on a farm, he loses hope. When children are forced out of schools, they lose opportunities to discover their potential. In Pakistan poverty robs thousands of children of their future. It forces them to face situations they are not responsible for. So when a less fortunate child dares to dream they are burdened in the name of obligation. Poverty closes the classroom’s door so that girls may help out in the kitchen or that boys fall into the endless spiral of child labor. A child is not supposed to choose between education and survival. Today the literacy rates of Balochistan fall around 44 percent. These are not just statistics, these are numbers representing hopes buried underneath responsibilities that were not for these young minds to bear. This premature transition into adulthood causes a child’s emotional and physical health to deteriorate.

Balochistan despite making up 44 percent of Pakistan’s total landmass remains underdeveloped in terms of academics. Students have to walk great distances simply to receive an education. This lack of infrastructure discourages students from attending school. Along with that the absence of basic necessities like fans, clean water and no proper sitting arrangements in rural areas seemingly cause students to be reluctant towards school. There is no single reason for these children to leave school; many factors contribute to broken tomorrows. Early marriages, household responsibilities and inadequate school conditions all combine to stop children from reaching their full potential.

Every child driven out of a classroom represents not only a personal loss—it also affects Pakistan’s future. What if the child who is now doing labor aspired to be an innovator but was coerced to leave behind school in the name of false responsibility? According to UNICEF, millions of children in Pakistan do not attend school. Behind every number is a child who has lost their chance of becoming an artist, a doctor, or a teacher. Children are not supposed to create possibilities where none exist. They are not responsible for doing hard labor in order to earn and neither are they so futile as to be given away into early marriages. A classroom is not just walls with a whiteboard, it is a child’s blank canvas where they conjure up goals and dreams. Education is treated as though it is a luxury, this alone tells the story of all the families who can not afford to send their children to school where books cost a fortune, where water is unavailable, and sometimes where dreams are not supported.

Blaming will not give the stolen futures back to these children, whether the responsibility lies with the government or with society. What matters is compassion for the children who still have prospects: parents who encourage their child by not rushing them through their childhood, teachers who dedicate their time to nurturing curious minds, communities that support an individual’s right to education by advocating for measures to be taken and a government that provides these children without holding them accountable for responsibilities beyond their years. No one deserves to limit their life because of fewer opportunities. We have faltered for long enough, depriving young minds of basic education. This chain of constant inequality must be broken, it is indispensable to do so. We must not teach our children to yield to circumstances. Talent runs through every young mind of Pakistan and these talents deserve to be cultivated. One day, a child from Lyari may save lives or a talented mind may make the most beautiful art—if the chance is given to them.

Somewhere in Pakistan, a child sleeps dreaming of becoming a doctor, an engineer, an artist or a teacher. The child does not yet know how to bring their dream into reality. The nation does.