Enrollment at schools has improved: Mashhood

The minister opens school building, computer lab

LAHORE: Education Minister Mashhood Ahmad Khan said on Thursday the Parho Punjab, Barho Punjab initiative had helped enhance enrollment and provide missing facilities at schools.

The minister said this while inaugurating the new building and a computer lab at Government Wasif Ali Wasif Boys High School, Gulshan-i-Ravi. Umeed Jawan Chief Executive Sarwat Jehan and Education EDO Pervaiz Akhtar were also present.

The Umeed Jawan has provided new furniture, computers, fans, a sound system, sports items and school bags to the school.

Khan praised the role of NGOs in promoting education. He said the government believed that education was the most effective tool against challenges faced by the country. “The government has allocated 27 per cent of the annual budget for education,” he said.

The minister thanked the Umeed Jawan for its contribution. He said a school council, consisting of locals, would be constituted to improve the standard of education. Training of teachers would also be arranged, he said.

Sarwat Jehan urged civil society to play its role of promoting education. She said Umeed Jawan would continue its cooperation in this regard. The minister also chaired a ceremony organised by Fatima Memorial Hospital where auto rickshaws, sewing machines and food hampers were distributed among its employees. Khan said equipping the youth with education would guarantee a bright future.Maulana Fazalur Raheem and Maulana Raghib Hussain Naeemi were also present.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 10^th, 2015.