The National Youth Helpline is offering confidential, youth-friendly support to young people dealing with stress, anxiety, relationship challenges, and personal struggles, according to a public notice issued by its partner organisations. Young people can call the toll-free number 0800-69457 on Monday to Friday between 8 am and 10 pm. The notice carries the logos of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the Higher Education Commission (HEC), the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme (PMYP), and ACT (Aiming Change for Tomorrow) International. It describes the helpline as a welcoming platform where young people are heard, understood, and respected, and as a direct line to talk, share, and seek support.
The helpline gives professional guidance for everyday personal stress, relationship challenges, and anxiety, and it is built around three promises: that calls are confidential, that the service is easy to reach, and that it is friendly to young people. These points matter for a service of this kind, since many young people hesitate to talk about mental health because of stigma or because they fear that their families or institutions will find out. The poster does not say who staffs the line, in which language calls are answered, or how callers are referred to other services if they need more help, so people who want those details will need to ask when they call or check with HEC.
The service is not new. It was launched at the HEC Secretariat in Islamabad on 1 November 2022 under the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme, as a joint effort by HEC, UNFPA, and the Rahnuma-Family Planning Association of Pakistan, to give young people a confidential route to information on problems linked to adolescence, including psychosocial counselling, career guidance, and reproductive health. UNFPA Pakistan later described the helpline as having been established in January 2023 at HEC premises with ACT International, and said it offers psychosocial first aid, counselling, and referrals to care providers for young women, men, and transgender individuals. HEC has also linked the helpline with Youth Development Centres in public universities and held awareness sessions at universities, including one at the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir in 2025.
The PMYP has continued to promote the number. On World Mental Health Day this year, its chairman, Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan, said young people face academic pressure, unemployment, and societal expectations that affect their well-being, and the programme pointed young people to the helpline for guidance. The current notice shows weekday hours of 8 am to 10 pm, which is shorter than the round-the-clock service that UNFPA described in earlier material, so callers outside those hours should check whether the line is available. The notice does not give a date for the latest awareness drive, and it does not say how many people use the service each month. Young people who are struggling can call 0800-69457 during service hours, and those who need help urgently outside those hours should contact local emergency services or a trusted person near them.
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