Every year, thousands of people in Pakistan die from diseases that should never claim a life. Not because medicine doesn’t exist. Not because treatments are unavailable worldwide, but because poverty places even the most basic healthcare out of reach for millions of families.
According to the World Health Organisation, at least half of the global population still lacks access to essential health services. In Pakistan, that statistic carries a human weight that is impossible to ignore: children dying from vaccine-preventable illnesses, mothers lost in childbirth for want of a skilled midwife, entire communities felled by contaminated water.
The most common preventable diseases among Pakistan’s poor include tuberculosis, typhoid, malaria, diarrhoeal illness, hepatitis A and E, childhood pneumonia, measles, malnutrition-related conditions, skin and eye infections, and preventable maternal death. Nearly all are linked to poverty, unsafe water, poor sanitation, and limited access to healthcare, and all are addressable through targeted charity interventions.
This article outlines 10 of the most common preventable diseases affecting Pakistan’s poorest communities, explains why poverty amplifies their impact, and shows how your support through Al-Qulub Trust’s Healthcare Appeal directly addresses each one.
Before examining specific diseases, it is worth understanding the mechanism that makes poverty so medically dangerous. Poor communities in Pakistan, particularly in rural Sindh, southern Punjab, and Balochistan, typically face a combination of:
These conditions do not just cause disease in isolation — they compound each other. A malnourished child catches pneumonia more easily, recovers more slowly, and is far more likely to die from it than a well-nourished child with access to a doctor.
TB is a bacterial infection of the lungs spread through the air. It thrives in overcrowded, poorly ventilated homes, conditions common in Pakistan’s urban slums and rural villages. It is curable, but treatment requires consistent medication over 6 months, something many poor families cannot sustain without support.
Pakistan carries one of the highest TB burdens in the world, ranking among the top five countries for new cases annually according to the WHO Global TB Report. Poverty both causes TB and prevents its cure: patients who cannot afford transport to clinics stop their treatment early, leading to drug-resistant strains that are far harder and more expensive to treat.
How charity helps: Al-Qulub Trust supports the delivery of essential medicines and clinic access for patients who would otherwise abandon treatment. Completing a full TB course is one of the highest-impact interventions in global health.
Typhoid is a serious bacterial infection caused by contaminated food or water. It is entirely preventable through clean water access and vaccination, yet it remains widespread in Pakistan’s flood-affected and low-income communities.
Drug-resistant typhoid has become a significant concern in Pakistan in recent years, with outbreaks reported in Sindh province affecting thousands. The root cause is consistent: contaminated water supplies and inadequate sanitation infrastructure in areas where poverty prevents basic hygiene.
How charity helps: Clean water projects like those supported through Al-Qulub Trust’s Water & Sanitation Appeal directly prevent typhoid by eliminating the contaminated water supply that spreads it.
Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease that is both preventable and treatable. In Pakistan, it disproportionately affects communities living near stagnant water, a condition worsened by seasonal flooding and poor drainage in low-income areas.
Pakistan accounts for a significant share of malaria cases in the Eastern Mediterranean region. Children under five and pregnant women face the highest risk of severe illness. Insecticide-treated bed nets, indoor spraying, and prompt treatment with antimalarial medicines are all proven, affordable solutions.
How charity helps: Charity-funded health clinics and medicine distribution programmes ensure that malaria is caught early and treated before it becomes life-threatening.
Diarrhoeal diseases are the leading cause of child deaths in Pakistan’s poorest regions. They are caused almost entirely by unsafe drinking water and poor sanitation, both of which are entirely preventable.
UNICEF data shows that diarrhoea kills more children in Pakistan than many high-profile diseases, yet it requires little more than oral rehydration salts and clean water to treat. The tragedy is not medical complexity it is access.
How charity helps: Water purification, sanitation facilities, and the provision of oral rehydration salts through charity-funded health posts directly prevent diarrhoeal deaths.
Both Hepatitis A and Hepatitis E spread through contaminated water and food. They cause severe liver inflammation and can be fatal in pregnant women and immunocompromised individuals. Pakistan has among the highest rates of Hepatitis E in the world.
These infections cluster in communities without sewage systems, where wastewater contaminates drinking supplies. Vaccination exists for Hepatitis A; Hepatitis E has no widely available vaccine, making clean water the primary preventive measure.
How charity helps: Water and sanitation infrastructure projects and health education programmes addressing food hygiene directly reduce Hepatitis A and E transmission.
Pneumonia is the single largest infectious cause of child death globally. In Pakistan, it kills tens of thousands of children annually, the majority of whom are malnourished, unvaccinated, or living in homes with indoor smoke from cooking fires.
Pneumonia vaccines (PCV) are highly effective and widely used in wealthier contexts. In Pakistan’s poorest communities, vaccination coverage remains inconsistent, and families often cannot access antibiotics quickly enough once symptoms begin.
How charity helps: Al-Qulub Trust’s vaccination drives and mobile health clinic initiatives ensure children receive pneumonia vaccines before illness strikes.
Malnutrition is not simply hunger; it is a medical condition that impairs immune function, stunts development, and dramatically increases death rates from every other disease on this list.
According to UNICEF Pakistan, nearly 40% of children under five in Pakistan are stunted due to chronic malnutrition. A malnourished child is up to nine times more likely to die from common infections. Addressing malnutrition is not separate from fighting disease; it is foundational to all of it.
How charity helps: Al-Qulub Trust’s Food Security Appeal addresses malnutrition at its root, providing vulnerable families with nutritious food assistance.
Measles is entirely preventable with two doses of a safe, inexpensive vaccine. Yet Pakistan continues to see measles outbreaks, primarily in communities with low vaccination coverage.
Measles weakens the immune system for months after infection, leaving children vulnerable to secondary infections, including pneumonia and diarrhoea. In malnourished children, measles carries a case fatality rate many times higher than in well-nourished populations.
How charity helps: Targeted vaccination campaigns, a core component of Al-Qulub Trust’s healthcare work, are the definitive solution to measles.
Conditions like trachoma (a preventable cause of blindness), scabies, and fungal infections are widespread in communities without clean water for washing. While rarely headline-grabbing, they cause immense suffering and lost productivity.
Trachoma, in particular, remains a public health concern in parts of rural Pakistan. It is caused by a bacterial infection spread through direct contact and flies — and is entirely preventable through facial cleanliness and access to water.
How charity helps: Clean water provision and hygiene education directly eliminate the conditions in which these infections spread.
Pakistan has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in Asia. The majority of maternal deaths are preventable with access to a skilled birth attendant, basic emergency obstetric care, and antenatal support.
Rural women in Pakistan often give birth at home without professional assistance, facing haemorrhage, infection, and obstructed labour with no medical support. These are not rare complications; they are routine emergencies that skilled care can manage.
How charity helps: Funding health clinics staffed by trained birth attendants and midwives, as part of Al-Qulub Trust’s broader healthcare mission, is among the most impactful uses of charitable funds.
Giving for the health of others is not merely a humanitarian instinct in Islam; it is a spiritual obligation and a source of immense reward.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said: “There is a reward for serving any living being.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 6009)
When you donate to fund a vaccination for a child, cover the cost of medicines for a TB patient, or help build a clean water facility in a village, you are fulfilling this principle in the most direct way imaginable. Your Zakat, Sadaqah, and voluntary giving can be channelled toward healthcare causes that save lives and earn ongoing reward, a true Sadaqah Jariyah.
Use the Al-Qulub Trust Zakat Calculator to determine your annual obligation and consider directing a portion toward the Healthcare Appeal.
Al-Qulub Trust is working to make that reduction a reality, one community at a time. Your donation to the Healthcare Appeal directly funds health clinics, vaccination drives, essential medicines, and emergency medical aid for Pakistan’s most vulnerable families.
Can one donation really make a difference to healthcare in Pakistan?
Yes. Many of the interventions above, oral rehydration salts, vaccines, and basic antibiotics, cost only a few pounds per person. A modest regular donation funds treatment for multiple patients every month.
Is donating to healthcare in Pakistan eligible for Gift Aid?
If you are a UK taxpayer, donating through Al-Qulub Trust means the government adds 25p for every £1 you give at no extra cost to you, significantly increasing the impact of every donation.
Does Zakat apply to healthcare donations?
Yes. Zakat can be given to those in poverty who cannot afford medical care, as they fall within the eligible categories of Zakat recipients. Sadaqah can also be given freely for healthcare causes at any time.
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