‘Radio Schools’ to go on air for curtailing educational loss amid pandemic

Girls who do not have access to schools will be major beneficiaries of this initiative, says education minister

The Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training in order to promote Distance Education System in the country has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Radio Pakistan and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for the establishment of “Radio Schools”.

The MoU signing ceremony was attended by Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Shibli Faraz, Secretary Education Farah Hamid Khan and Secretary Information and Broadcasting Zahida Parveen on Friday.

The establishment of Radio Schools is a major step towards ensuring children’s access to education at the doorstep to save their educational loss due to Covid-19.

This step has been taken under the light of Prime Minister's vision of providing education to each and every child.

The children belonging to far-flung areas would take benefit from this initiative of the Federal Education Ministry as the Radio Pakistan has complete access across the country.

Radio Schools would broadcast educational programmes from 10am to 12pm in the morning while the same will be repeated in the evening so that the children working in workshops would take benefit from it and not deprived of the basic right to education.

These programmes can also be accessed through the Internet and Mobile App.

Shafqat Mehmood said that the girls who do not have access to schools due to any reason would be major beneficiaries of this initiative of the government. “Our government is providing education to students especially the girls at their doorsteps aiming at to provide education to them.”

He said that last year the education ministry in collaboration with Pakistan Television launched Teleschool project from which around 8 million children were taking benefit on daily basis.

The initiative of Teleschool was started just in 15 days in order to save precious educational time of children in wake of Covid-19. However, those who do not have access to Teleschool, would now take benefit from Radio Schools project.

The aim of these steps, the minister said, is to take benefit from all available modern resources rather to focus only on one thing.

He also informed that we are going to launch e-Education Portal soon through which the programmes of Teleschool and Radioschools can be accessed through one click.

The Federal Education Ministry was making all-out efforts for the development of Distance Education System in the county and in that regard a wing had been established in the education ministry.

It is also introducing a policy regarding distance education soon, which will be a compulsory part of the National Education Policy, he mentioned.