PHOTO: AFP
In order to improve access to basic education and provide equal opportunities to all citizens, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government will conduct a household survey to identify out-of-school children across the province.
After the 1998 national census, this will be the first such undertaking which will help assess with some accuracy any population subgroup in the province.
According to the PC-1 approved by Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP) on Monday, a copy of which is available with The Express Tribune, K-P government will conduct a household survey in 25 districts and will standardise primary education across the province.
The survey will give detailed and accurate figures that will facilitate decision-making and planning, allowing development in the education sector.
Towards service delivery
The PC-1 document reveals the household survey will be conducted by the K-P elementary and secondary education department which will then provide comprehensive data for planning and development. “This will serve as an effective tool for the education department, allowing it to take informed decisions and corrective measures to improve service delivery at all levels, particularly in schools,” it read.
The basic objectives of the survey include identifying out-of-school children across the province and providing equal opportunities to all citizens with regard to access to education, especially to children from remote, neglected and less-developed areas.
According to the document, the scheme for the survey covers the overall aims of the National Education Policy that remained part of all five-year plans. It also includes, under the umbrella of education sector reforms, the goal of education for all.
Universal access
“Universalization of primary education is the government’s first priority and efforts are being made to achieve the target of 100% enrolment at the primary school level,” PC-1 stated.
It also upholds Article 25-A of the 18th Amendment that states it is the responsibility of the state to provide free and compulsory education to all children between the ages of five and sixteen years in such a manner as may be determined by law.
According to a handout issued on Monday, Minister for Elementary and Secondary Education Muhammad Atif Khan while talking to representatives of Pakistan Telecommunication Limited said the primary objective of the PTI government is to put a pen in the hands of every child in K-P.
“The administration has evolved a survey to visit each doorstep and determine the number of children not willing to go to school,” he said, adding, short, medium and long-term goals were being set to improve education on an emergency basis in the province.
Cost of census
The scheme is proposed as part of Annual Development Programme 2015-16 with a total allocation of Rs60 million. However, detailed estimates suggest the cost will be increased to Rs227.40 million.
Talking to The Express Tribune, K-P Elementary and Secondary Education Director Rafiq Khattak said this survey would be completed before December 2016 and 35,723 enumerators (at the rate of 100 houses per enumerator) will take part in it.
“The number of required supervisors is 7,145 (at the rate of 500 houses per supervisor) who will be trained by experts while public sector teachers concerned will also be trained in social mobilisation, data collection and analysis,” he said.
On a larger scale
According to the document, the survey’s output will help encourage children to complete primary school and also address issue of gender disparity by promoting gender equality and women empowerment.
K-P elementary and secondary education department also updated an education sector plan for years 2015-20 which is the first ever comprehensive agenda in the history of the country, which covers all aspects of the education sector.
The numbers
Due to delay in the national census, elementary and secondary education department was not in a position to calculate the exact number of out-of-school children and the areas they belonged to.
According to available statistics, there are 28,178 government schools in K-P out of which 27,823 are functional and 82 (43 primary, 39 middle schools) are newly constructed but not yet functional or operational.
Of functional primary level schools, 20,545 are government primary schools, 1,877 are seminary schools, 264 are community primary schools, 30 are JICA primary model schools while over 5,000 schools belong to other categories.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 15th, 2016.
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