The Senate Standing Committee on States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON) on Thursday was informed that measures has been taken to bring the religious seminaries (Deeni Maddaris) of erstwhile FATA into mainstream education system.
Awami National Party MPA Shagufta Malik has moved a resolution in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly demanding allocation of six percent of the total gross domestic product (GDP) for girl’s education.
Shagufta, who is also a member of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) task force said the proposal was in compliance with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Free Compulsory Primary and Secondary Education Act, 2017 and the international commitments made by Pakistan under the Universal Periodic Review in Human Rights Council (HRC) of United Nations (UN).
In budget 2019-2020, the KPK government must introduce equitable resource allocation measures to boost girls education, in a bid to bridge the prevalent gap between boys and girls enrolment at the secondary school level
“According to Pakistan Education Statistics 2016-17 by the Academy of Educational Planning and Management (AEPAM), an autonomous organization of Ministry of Education, in newly merged tribal districts 73 percent of school-going age girls are out of school, compared to just 43 percent of all boys,” the woman lawmaker stated in the resolution.
The MPA added that almost 49 percent girls were not in schools in comparison to 21 percent of boys in different districts of the province. Calling upon the commitment made in the Article 37 (b), Part II, Chapter 2, and Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan 1973 and” Article 25 A, Part-II, Chapter 1, “The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of 5 to 16 years in such a manner as may be determined by law,” making the government responsible to make necessary provisions, she added.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa civil society, NGO’s and education rights activists applauded the resolution and called for an overall increase in resource allocation for girls secondary education budget in the year 2019-2020. Blue Veins Programme Coordinator Qamar Naseem, lauded the resolution and said the budget was a true reflection of the government’s top-most priorities.
“Without the allocation of resources, especially financial, the government cannot realize the right to education. Pakistan cannot meet its minimum core obligations, such as securing free compulsory primary and secondary education for all, or the obligation to progressively realize certain aspects of the right to education, such as the progressive introduction of free secondary, vocational and higher education,” he added.
The government has prepared a comprehensive plan to transform 21 higher secondary schools in erstwhile FATA into ‘Schools of Excellence’ in a bid to provide quality education to the tribal scholars and learners. According to the education department official, under ‘Standardization of Higher Secondary Schools’ project of the Federal Government, 21 higher secondary schools would soon be transformed and will provide modern educational facilities to students of the newly merged tribal districts on the lines of Quick Impact Program. The students will be educated on modern lines through the means of IT gadgets and tools and will have access to up-to-date laboratories with experienced staff and equipment.
With private schools up in arms against the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Private Schools Regularity Authority (KP-PSRA) regarding its recent directives regarding fee increase, the provincial government has now softened its approach in an attempt to reach a workable solution.
Although 10 Pakistani universities have been included in the recently launched Times Higher Education (THE) ranking titled Emerging Economies University Rankings 2018, just one university from Pakistan has found a place among the top 100 institutions.
A division bench of Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Tuesday took stern notice of the two-day strike called by private schools across the province and directed authorities to take administrative control and seal bank accounts of schools that participated in the strike.
An association of private schools in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has announced a two-day strike against the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Private Schools Regulatory Authority (KP-PSRA) over what it said were “incomprehensible laws”.
Thousands of children in Swat and were treated to various scientific models and crafts, as the biggest ever science festival in the region kicked off on Tuesday.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Private Schools Regulatory Authority (KP-PSRA) has approved the new PSRA regulations under Section-30 of the KP-PSRA Act-2017 in compliance with the Peshawar High Court judgment passed on November 8, 2017, banning the increase in fees by private educational institutions until further directives.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has ordered district scrutiny committees across the province to supervise the new registration process and inspect the renewal process of previously registered schools to regulate private schools in KP.