Alishba Khan Barech

Alishba Khan Barech is Pakistan’s youngest novelist (at 11), memoirist (at 14), and self-published author (at 16).

A Pashtun born in Quetta, her hometown is Nushki in Balochistan, a region often described as historically overlooked.

She began her literary journey with a 100-word school assignment that blossomed into a full-length novel.

She serves as UNICEF Champion for Polio Eradication. Her article titled "two drops against lifetime disability" was published on the UNICEF global blog website. The piece made waves globally, with UNICEF Polio headquarters in New York giving her a shoutout.

Recognized as a Trailblazer Author by UNICEF during the United Nations Day of the Girl celebrations in 2020, Alishba also served as UNICEF Mental Health Ambassador during their global campaign. She is a young contributor to leading newspaper editorials.

Her work has also been published by Yale University in their global undergraduate academic journal YRIS: The Yale Review of International Studies.

Her impact has been recognized globally. In 2025, she was named Young Woman of the Year at the Women Changing the World Awards in London, selected from 751 nominees across 50 countries. That same year, she received the International Women Award (Dubai) for Community Impact, the Nasreen Kasuri Women in Excellence Award for Inspirational Student, and the Hamaray Heroes Award (2024) for her contributions to youth and literature.

Beyond writing, Alishba is a Youth Advisor to the Prime Minister of Pakistan, a member of the National Youth Council, and a Youth Ambassador for the Quetta Gladiators, Pakistan Super League T-20 cricket franchise.

Academically, Alishba is a two-time Cambridge University Immerse Essay Competition scholarship shotlisted participant (2020 & 2021) and the first Pashtun woman from Balochistan to be accepted into Oxford’s John Locke Institute on a merit scholarship.

She is a passionate and multifaceted individual. As the only student in her province studying Environmental Management, she extends her commitment to sustainability through Ocean-O-Mania, a creative series promoting marine life and ecological awareness. Beyond the environment, she is deeply interested in vaccine advocacy, history, and archival research, often challenging inaccurate narratives. A lover of classical literature and old movies, she even names some of her fictional characters after iconic actors. She also tries to keep a close eye on geopolitics, reflecting her broad intellectual curiosity.

She also contested and won her school’s student union elections three times, while balancing authorship, advocacy, and academics.

She can be reached at LinkedIn and X.

LinkedIn (alishba-k-barech)

X (ALISHBAKBARECH)