In 2020, across the world, almost 5 million children under the age of five died. Nearly half of that number are newborns. These large mortality numbers are mostly due to illnesses that can be prevented or treated. Malaria and AIDS (HIV infection), for example, can be prevented if you know how to avoid them.

Every child has the right to receive primary education. Primary education is typically designed for students aged 6 to 11. It contributes significantly to the reduction of extreme poverty and the promotion of social change.

The global adjusted net attendance rate in 2019 was 87 percent, with nearly four out of every five children graduating from elementary school. In addition, the number of out-of-school children has declined by over 40 percent in the last two decades. However, 58 million children in elementary school are not enrolled. The bulk of them is from underprivileged communities.

Data from the Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) show that many children lack foundational reading and math skills. It means that providing a high-quality education to all children is a major challenge.

There are several problems with the education system in Pakistan. The first is that there are multiple educational systems, and they lack consistency.

Another one is that the curriculum and assessment systems are outdated. The curriculum focuses on memorization, and the assessment system does not assess critical thinking.

However, Pakistan’s main issue is its high dropout rate. Pakistan has the highest dropout rate among developing countries. According to 2017 research, 40% of children aged 5 to 6 years old did not attend school. Poverty and child labor are all key contributors to this issue. One solution to this problem is to help poor families send their children to school instead of working.

Girls and women need equal rights and opportunities without discrimination. However, there are some gender issues around wage inequality, employment, physical violence, sexual harassment, marriage, and pregnancy.

Data shows that 49 countries still lack laws protecting women from domestic violence, whereas 15 million girls under the age of 18 get married every year.

There has been progress in accessing clean drinking water, but billions of people, mostly in rural areas, still lack access to these services. Data shows that 3 out of 10 individuals do not have access to safe drinking water, and 2.4 billion people lack access to basic sanitation services such as toilets or bathrooms. Moreover, at least 892 million people continue to practice open defecation. If this continues, more people will suffer from water-borne diseases.

This situation also reduces women’s opportunities for education and economic involvement. In 80 percent of households without access to water, women and girls are in charge of water collection. This means they won’t be able to work or go to school.

Water is important for many things, including drinking, toilets, livestock, and businesses. Farm managers with high-producing dairy cows have reported big improvements in milk output when cows have easy access to water. It is known that stale, poor-tasting water reduces water consumption and that this type of water could be a breeding ground for disease-causing organisms.

The cost of doing business is increasing. In Brazil, for example, the 2015 drought cost an extra $8 million including higher utility bills. According to Ecolab, a water treatment company based in the United States, 80 percent of the water used by corporations comes from their supply networks. Falling water levels can cause delays in shipping, leaving cargo stranded on the way to its destination.