Islamabad: Despite a steady rise in HIV cases in the federal capital over the past few years, national and district health authorities, including the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the District Health Office (DHO) Islamabad, are struggling to acquire complete and reliable data, raising serious concerns about the country’s ability to contain the spread of the HIV, officials and researchers said on Saturday.
At least 618 HIV infections have been reported over the past 15 months, with around 41 new cases emerging on average every month in the federal capital. However, despite the growing caseload, officials at the NIH and the DHO Islamabad say they are not being provided detailed, timely and disaggregated HIV data by the federal National AIDS Control Programme or provincial programmes, making it difficult to track transmission patterns, identify hotspots and plan targeted interventions.
Documents show that on April 20, 2026, the DHO Islamabad formally wrote to the Common Management Unit (CMU) for AIDS, TB and Malaria, seeking technical and operational support to strengthen HIV prevention, surveillance and response. The letter warned that the rising number of cases reflects ongoing transmission and requires an urgent, coordinated response.
The DHO specifically sought provision of rapid testing kits, technical support to establish an integrated surveillance and data management system, deployment of trained staff for field-level screening and counselling, and expert guidance to design targeted interventions for high-risk populations. Officials say these measures cannot be effectively implemented without access to accurate data.
In separate communications, the DHO also approached the Islamabad Healthcare Regulatory Authority (IHRA), private healthcare providers and the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), calling for strict enforcement of infection prevention and control measures and regular sharing of HIV case data.
Healthcare facilities were directed to ensure single-use of syringes and needles, proper sterilisation of instruments, mandatory screening of blood and blood products, and immediate reporting of suspected or confirmed HIV cases through designated surveillance channels. PIMS was requested to share updated anonymised patient data with locality-wise breakdowns to support epidemiological analysis and mapping of transmission trends.
However, officials say the core issue remains unresolved.
“We are being asked to respond to a growing public health problem in form of rising HIV cases, but we do not have the full picture,” a senior NIH official said. “HIV data is not being shared with us, neither by the federal programme nor by provincial programmes. Without that, we cannot understand where infections are coming from or how they are spreading.”
District health authorities echoed similar concerns, saying that without knowing who is being affected and where cases are concentrated, prevention efforts remain largely ineffective.
“If we do not know the geographic spread or the risk groups, how can we plan screening, awareness campaigns or interventions? We are essentially trying to control a disease without seeing it clearly,” a district health official said.
The concern comes at a time when Islamabad is reporting a steady increase in HIV cases, many of which are being detected at major treatment and diagnostic centres that cater not only to local residents but also to patients from other parts of the country. Health experts say distinguishing between imported and locally transmitted cases is critical, but that requires detailed and shared data.
Former Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Zafar Mirza has also warned against withholding disease data, saying transparency is essential for effective control. He noted that even alarming figures are useful only when they are part of a consistent and comparable dataset over time.
“Our bureaucratic mindset is that by controlling data, we can control the disease. That is simply not true,” he said, citing Pakistan’s experience with Covid-19 and dengue, where open data sharing helped shape an effective response.
Public health officials say unsafe injection practices, reuse of syringes, poor infection control in healthcare settings and gaps in blood screening remain key drivers of HIV transmission in Pakistan. The letters issued by the DHO underline these risks and call for stricter enforcement across public and private healthcare facilities.
They also stress the need for coordinated surveillance, timely reporting and community-based screening to identify cases early and prevent further spread.
However, officials warn that without cooperation from the national programme and access to real-time, disaggregated data, Islamabad’s response will remain limited.
“HIV is not a disease that can be controlled through guesswork,” an NIH official said. “We need numbers, trends and clarity. Without that, we are always one step behind.”
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