Pakistan to pay Britain Rs42b for O-level exam

Precious foreign exchange continues to outflow as PKR plunges

ISLAMABAD:

Due to the consistent deterioration of the local education standards and currency devaluation, foreign exchange worth billions of rupees are moving out of Pakistan as the fees charged in the Great British Pounds (GBP) have automatically increased after the steep plunge of the Pakistani rupee

. According to sources, Rs42 billion will be transferred from Pakistan to the UK only for the O-level exam this year.

Given the storm of inflation, parents are forced to compromise on the quality of education of their children in hopes of a better future for them.

Sources said the amount transferred abroad is slightly less than the budget allocated for the Higher Education Commission (HEC).

Sources said the examination fee for eight subjects in O-Level under the Cambridge Board is Rs211,000. The students have five compulsory subjects and can choose three optional subjects.

The registration fee for each scientific subject is Rs22,390 and for each non-scientific subject is Rs20,340. In addition to this, Rs61,000 is charged for the subjects of Islamic Studies, Pakistan Studies and Urdu.

O-level, A-level and IGSE exams are held twice a year. According to the documents, the Cambridge Board will take Rs21 billion from Pakistan-based students in just one O-level exam.

This year, more than 0.1 million Pakistani students will participate in the annual examinations of O and A levels.

More than 40,000 students are sitting in O and A level exams from Karachi alone