WB seeks explanation from Sindh for non-utilisation of funds

Official says education department start compiling data in view of the WB letter to justify their case.

KARACHI: Taking notice of The Express Tribune report titled ‘0% utilisation of funds in 346 education, health schemes in Sindh’, the World Bank (WB), which lends money for education reforms in Sindh, has expressed concern over the situation.

In a letter addressed to the secretary education, WB’s Country Director for Pakistan Patchamuthu Illangovan has inquired about the reason for non-utilisation of the budget, officials of the education department told this correspondent.

“In view of the WB’s letter, the education department officials have started compiling data” in order to justify their case, said a senior official of the department, requesting not to be named.



For the education department – where an emergency has been declared – the government has allocated approximately Rs13 billion for various development schemes. But not a single penny has been utilised on 68 per cent of the schemes in last three quarters.

“There are a total of 396 development schemes pertaining to the construction of schools, colleges, renovation of buildings and [for] providing missing facilities and initiating early child education etc, but 270 of the schemes are lying idle with the status of zero expenditure,” said the official.

He said the provincial finance department has also released funds for many schemes, but no one has taken interest in utilising them.



According to a budget execution report released by the finance department, the government has allocated Rs650 million for the establishment of preschool education in all divisions of Sindh. In this connection, Rs340 million has also been released, but there is 0% utilisation of funds on these schemes.

Approximately Rs35 million has been earmarked under this scheme for Hyderabad division and Rs25 million has been released, but not a single penny has been spent, it says.

The progress report further reveals that the education department had to introduce computer education at the primary level in various districts of Sindh, and an amount of Rs70 million is available in the budget books, but no one has moved to utilise the funds.



There are two major World Bank interventions in the education sector -- the first being the Sindh Education Reforms Programme, under which the government has to develop infrastructure of the schools and start ‘school consolidation plan’ converting around 4,500 schools into 1,350 consolidated schools.

“This programme was initially started back in 2007-8. This is in the second phase and each phase comprises five year. In this phase which is going to expire in June this year, the government with the help of the WB has earmarked around 400 million dollars. But the performance is evident from the utilisation,” a senior official in the education department said.

He said the government – with the help of the WB – has started ‘Sindh Global Partnership for Education Project’ with an estimated cost of 60 million dollars for biometric system and monitoring of the teachers, but the performance here is not satisfactory either.



“There are millions of rupees worth of funds for upgrading of schools from primary to secondary levels. But a majority of the schemes again remain untouched,” he said.

The report further revealed that the government had to initiate work on Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Girls Cadet College in Larkana at an estimated cost of Rs427 million. Of the amount, Rs10 million was released this year, but the spending in zero.

The same is the condition of other cadet colleges planned in Dadu and other districts of the province.



According to official documents, this year the government has to establish an IT university in Khairpur. With the total cost of the university estimated at Rs1,800 million, an amount of Rs450 million has been allocated in the current fiscal year for executing the plan, but the amount has not been utilised.

Despite several attempts, the minister and the secretary education could not be contacted for their comments.

However, a spokesperson for the education department refuted that funds were not utilised under the scheme. “We have to go through tender awarding process as well as approval from concerned quarters for initiating the schemes. It takes time,” he said.



The spokesperson cited the example of the Cadet College Larkana where a land dispute has caused delays.