Pakistani general elections 2018 are just around the corner. Ever wondered where education stands in Pakistani political parties' manifestos? Here's a clue where.
With the election season underway in full swing, the usual slogans and promises by political parties have again made their way to the market. Some are promising to build new dams if voted to power this time (despite being at the helm for over two decades), some are banking on achievements of their forefathers, while some players are drumming up their feats against the corrupt. But a major issue that is still missing from the sloganeering is education, and how these parties plan to improve the crumbling system.
Education remains one of the major challenges for Pakistan, with over 22.84 million children between the ages of five and 16 years remaining out of schools. This calls for major education reforms in Pakistan. And although we lament the lack of education’s mention in massive rallies and sermons by political leaders, these political factions do in fact have some mention of education in their party manifestos.
School Reforms in Manifestos Of Major Pakistani Political Parties in Election 2018
The three major parties in race for power, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) have each touched upon the subject of education and their achievements in their manifestos. Here is what Pakistani political parties' manifestos have to say about their plans to tackle education problems in Pakistan.
The PML-N is promising to raise the budget for education to 4 percent of the national GDP and aims at providing international quality basic education with equal importance to girls. The party says it will ensure that every child is enrolled in a school to get primary education and offer scholarships for deserving students to eradicate economic roadblocks to education.
PTI on the other hand claims it will implement “the most ambitious education agenda in Pakistan’s history”. The party says it will establish minimum standards for all public schools and will build the largest public-private partnership to provide access to education through vouchers for low-fee private schools. The PTI has also proposed community mobilisation, wherein 50,000 educated youth will be encouraged to teach students in their communities in return for university credits. The party says it will create an ‘Education Fund’ for young entrepreneurs so that they develop technology and communication-enabled solutions to provide access to education in remote areas.
The PPP plans to increase the public expenditure on education to 5 percent of the GDP by 2025, and will ensure that all provinces develop and implement strong plans for education as per the larger vision. The PPP also plans to upgrade all girls’ primary schools to at least lower secondary level as well as allocating more resources for girls’ education and stipends to ensure girls complete secondary school.
The alliance of religiopolitical parties, Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), states that it will allocate a minimum of 5 percent of the GDP for education and 25 percent allocation of the provincial budget. The party says that basic facilities in educational institutions will be ensured and free education will be provided up to the secondary level. The MMA says Urdu will be made the language of instruction and religious education of Quran and Sunnah will be made compulsory up to the higher secondary level. It also promises separate educational institutions for girls at all levels.
Curriculum & Teaching Reforms In Manifestos Of Major Parties In Election 2018
Curriculum or the quality of syllabus is a vital part of any education system, and one that needs urgent attention on part of the powers that be. Pakistani Political Parties' Manifestos outline reformation plans for this vital segment.
PML-N’s plans will focus on
- Producing curriculum that fosters the ability to think as well as instil moral values in children.
- Providing quality education in every school with a set minimum standard.
- A teachers’ career development programme to encourage teachers based on their performance.
- A national training academy for teachers.
PTI's plans include
- A national body to gauge future labour force requirements and increase or decrease supply of different fields of education.
- A National Commission for Education Standards that will issue a revised “Minimum Standards” list within six months of its constitution.
- National Dialogue and technical consultation to approve policy on the teaching of languages at each level of education.
- A standardised central examination scheme.
The PPP says it will
- Promote equity, empowerment and accountability, compassion, civic engagement and critical thinking through the curriculum
- Engage all provinces to actively de-radicalise the curriculum and promote religious harmony
- Include history, culture and heritage of each province in curriculum
- Give autonomy to textbook boards to produce quality books, the development and review processes for which will be standardised and institutionalised
- Build capacity of teachers to teach English curriculum to pupils
The MMA plans to
- Reduce gap between various education systems.
- Focusing on increasing religious curriculum in mainstream education system and modern curricula in seminaries.
- The party also focuses on bringing Urdu as the primary language of instruction.
Higher Education Reforms In Manifestos Of Major Parties In Election 2018
Higher education is one of the key segments of Pakistan’s educational system and has been the focus of much debate in the recent years, especially after the passing of the 18th Constitutional Amendment that made provinces in charge of education. The move has since led to frequent operational and jurisdictional issues between federal and provincial higher education commissions that continue to date. Following are the salient features regarding higher education in Pakistani political parties' manifestos.
PML-N
- Increase funding of higher education sector, raise funding by 0.5 percent of GDP.
- More funding would be generated through other means such as start-ups, research grants and executive training programmes.
- Raise the number of female faculty members.
- Increase enrolment in higher education sector by 10 percent each year.
- Additional 15,000 PhD scholars to be trained in field of science and technology.
PTI
- Regulate university curriculum to include compulsory courses on communication, reasoning, IT literacy and social sciences.
- Remove political influence and create an independent, transparent mechanism to select vice chancellors and senior administrators.
- Create partnerships with international universities to improve teaching and research quality.
Incentivise research quality (as judged by international benchmarks) as opposed to research volume. - Establish at least 10 technical universities in Pakistan.
- Provide public scholarships and set up a National Endowment Fund for international universities.
- International distance-learning opportunities for tertiary education.
- Attract foreign university graduates from Pakistan to teach and supervise research in local universities.
PPP
- Ensuring access to higher education, meaning no individual wishing to continue quality higher and professional education is deprived of the opportunity.
- Developing well-functioning and modern universities with high quality teachers in each district.
- Formal collaborations between Pakistani and foreign universities.
- Multiple sources of funding such as scholarships, interest free student loans at the district, divisional, provincial and federal level.
- Formulate internships for students; mandatory paid internships in all institutions so that young people are included in the workforce systematically.
Madrassah Reforms In Manifestos Of Major Parties In Election 2018
The PTI promises to
- Register all seminaries and introduce literacy and mathematics teaching as formal subjects.
- Restructure syllabi and mainstreaming madrassas by providing them with proper educational facilities.
- Introduce teacher training and special Islamic teaching academies with diplomas for teaching.
- Mainstream madrassahs by initiating a public-private “adopt a Madrassah scheme” where the business enterprises in the local area will be given tax benefits for adopting a madrassah, upgrading it and offering apprenticeships to its graduating students.
The MMA says it will
- Bridge the gap between conventional and seminary education by providing religious education up to the intermediate level.
- Provide compulsory modern education for madrassah students.
Our Take
Although the promises by each party do outline the plans for reforms and development in the education sector, no party has explained or hinted at how the changes would be implemented. Nonetheless, there are certain themes apparent in each party’s educational agenda, which hint both at the party’s view of the current system as well as its vision for the future. Here are some observations.
PTI
The PTI seems intent on doing away with a majority of current educational practices and start afresh with a different and contemporary education system. From new national-level organisations that will formulate and implement policies and implement checks and balances to providing opportunities to youth with new programmes and policies, the PTI manifesto aims at building the system ground up. To view the complete PTI Manifesto 2018, visit this link.
PML-N
In contrast, the PML-N wants a continuation of policies that it introduced during its previous regime with minor adjustments, besides suggesting some new programmes. The party has hinted at increasing the financing as well as size and volume of its already existing programmes during the next five years. You can view the detailed PML-N Manifesto 2018 here.
PPP
The PPP’s agenda is more focused on facilitating the deprived sections of the society by ensuring access to education at all levels and geographic locations. PPP has also hinted at reforms to provide thought and intellectual freedom in the field of education. Click here if you wish to access the detailed PPP Manifesto 2018.
MMA
As expected, the MMA manifesto outlines plans to focus on making religious education a vital part of education. The party wants to enhance understanding of religion through compulsory teaching of Quran and Sunnah. It has also suggested giving more recognition to Urdu language by laying down its plans to shift the medium of instruction to Urdu. Interestingly, the party also wants revival of student unions and proposes gender segregation at all levels.
Education is one of the fundamental rights of citizens of Pakistan; one that has been compromised on for far too long by the people. Come elections, it is important to know what a political party can deliver or plans to deliver in order that you make the best decision possible . Weigh your options the correct way and vote wisely.
God bless Pakistan.
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