23,000 HIV patients untraceable in Pakistan, says health minister

Pakistan is facing a gap in HIV treatment, with around 23,000 registered patients currently untraceable and not receiving care, Health Minister Mustafa Kamal said on Tuesday.

Addressing a press conference, he said the country has 84,000 registered HIV/AIDS cases, of which 61,000 are under treatment. The remaining patients are not accessing care despite free medicines being available at government centres. He warned that untreated individuals could contribute to further transmission.

The minister also raised concerns over funding transparency, stating that most of a $65 million HIV programme had been allocated to external organisations rather than the health ministry.

He noted that testing capacity has expanded significantly in recent years, while infection trends remain stable. Pakistan’s HIV prevalence stands at about 0.1%, lower than the global average.

Kamal rejected reports of a new outbreak, saying no fresh cases had been reported in 2026 in key areas.