DESPITE their scale, out-of-school adolescents and youth (OOSAY) are the most overlooked demographic, remaining largely invisible in policy discourse and programmatic prioritisation. Census 2023 data shows that a whopping 63 per cent of Pakistan’s youth population and 23pc of adolescent population have never received any formal education. Gender disparities are stark, with nearly three-quarters of women aged 15-29 having never enrolled in school, compared to about one-half of men.

These figures reflect more than just statistical gaps; they capture the lived realities of a majority of young people who experience early and sustained exclusion from proper education, leading to marginalisation on multiple fronts, including alternative learning opportunities, decent employment, health access and civic engagement.

Their concentration in the informal economy limits the availability of timely and reliable data, constraining evidence-based, targeted responses to support their reintegration. Moreover, policy frameworks routinely collapse OOSAY into broader youth categories, assuming exposure to formal schooling that many never had. This effectively renders them excluded from the very support intended for them.

SDPI, in collaboration with UNFPA conducted a mixed-methods ‘needs assessment’ of OOSAY across KP and Punjab. The aim was to understand the kind of support OOSAY themselves say they need to support their reintegration across four key domains: education, employment, health, and engagement.

Out-of-school adolescents and youth should be........

© Dawn