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A coalition of 9 civil society organizations have joined hands to demand at least 12 years of free, compulsory and quality education for every child in Pakistan.
These organizations included Pakistan Coalition for Education, Awaz CDS, Pakistan Youth Change Advocates (PYCA), Blue Veins, Da Hawwa Lur, Social Youth Council of Patriots (SYCOP), Orenda, Idara Baraye Taleem-o-Taraqi and Pak Alliance for Maths & Science Trust.
Areebah Shahid, Executive Director Pakistan Youth Change Advocates shared, “There are 50.8 million children in Pakistan between the ages of 5 and 16, of which 22.8 million are out of school. 13 million or 53% of these out-of-school children in Pakistan are girls.”
While girls’ access to quality education is dismal across the country, the situation at the grass-root level is all the more precarious.
Zubair Torwali, Executive Director Idara Baraye Taleem-o-Taraqi spoke about the situation of girls’ education in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
“There are fewer schools for girls at all levels compared to boys. For instance, as per Department of Education Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Annual School Census Report 2017 – 18, there are 12586 boys primary schools compared to only 8594 for girls. Similarly, there are 1475 middle schools and 1422 high schools for boys in the province compared to only 1198 middle schools and 805 high schools for girls.”
Similarly, representatives of AwazCDS-Pakistan shared the state of girls’ education in Punjab.
Zia-ur-Rehman, Executive Director AwazCDS-Pakistan shared, “It is alarming to note that free and compulsory education Act 2014 is yet to be notified under section A Sub section –III. It is further alarming that rules of business of the important law under section 24 have also not been prepared yet.”
Likewise, Marium Amjad, Program Manager Awaz CDS shared that a recent study carried out by AwazCDS-Pakistan explores governance, accountability and financing frameworks adopted by the government during the last five years (2013-2018) in the Province of Punjab particularly in the districts of southern part of Punjab.
The study reveals that the number of high schools for girls in southern Punjab are half the number of high schools in northern Punjab whereas the number of Masjid Maktab Schools (MMS) are five times greater in southern Punjab than in northern districts of Punjab.
The study also reveals that only 2.1% girls are being enrolled in southern Punjab out of a total of 7.7% population of girls that is eligible for enrollment.
On average less than 10% of the yearly budget is being spent as development expenditures.
The representatives of the civil society organizations however welcomed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government’s recent move to divert 70 percent of the education development budget towards girls’ education.
This step, it was believed will play an important role in bringing more girls towards schools at all levels in the province. The civil society representatives urged other provinces to follow Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s example to prioritize girls’ access to education.
“As per international standards at least 6 percent of the GDP needs to be allocated towards education. However, even today Pakistan is merely allocating 2.7 percent of its GDP for education,” said Zehra Arshad, National Coordinator, Pakistan Coalition for Education.
Why 12 years of education for every child is especially important for Pakistan?
In light of global evidence, the benefits of secondary education for girls are not only extended to the individual, it has proven to uplift families, communities and nations altogether.
Aside from the fact that education is an inherent human right, investing in girl’s secondary education specially makes economic sense for a country like Pakistan that continues to struggle with socio-political challenges on top of a dwindling economy.
At the end of the press conference, the civil society organizations issued a joint call requesting Prime Minister Imran Khan and Federal Minister for Education & Professional Training, Shafqat Mahmood to:
- Enhance the ambit of Article 25-A to ensure at least 12 years of free, compulsory and quality education for every child in Pakistan.
- Allocate at least 6 percent of the GDP for education (and)
- Ensure effective spending of the education development budget to ensure greater provision of school buildings, teaching aids and trained teachers.
Thanks for sharing this informative blog. Keep up the good work.
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