Balochistan to tackle education disparity

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held a meeting with Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti with a focus on addressing educational disparities and boosting socio-economic development in Balochistan, particularly in marginalized regions of the province.

The meeting aimed at discussing and implementing initiatives to mitigate educational gaps and uplift the educational sector in the province.

During the meeting, the prime minister endorsed various transformative education interventions for which support will be provided by the federal government.

As per the directions of the prime minister, four Daanish Schools will be established in the province for underprivileged children. Furthermore, a grant from the Qatar Fund will be specifically allocated to cater to the needs of Out-of-School Children (OOSC) in Balochistan.

In a move to promote access to higher education, 20 per cent of the Pakistan Education Endowment Fund (PEEF) scholarships will now be reserved for students from Balochistan. In addition, 15 per cent of the NAVTTC Skill Development Training Program seats will be earmarked for Balochistan.

Recognizing the importance of technology in education, degree colleges in Balochistan will be transformed into Centers of Excellence in IT, affiliating with prestigious institutions such as NUST, NUML, NUTECH, and COMSATS.

Additionally, efforts will be made to provide school meals through BISP to 500 public sector schools in lagging districts, in collaboration with non-profit organizations.

Performance-based grants will be provided to the Balochistan government from the Actions to Strengthen Performance for Inclusive and Responsive Education (ASPIRE) Program and the Rs25 billion-Out-of-School Children (OOSC) Challenge Fund for lagging districts in Balochistan.

To enhance access to higher education, federal universities will double their quota for students from Balochistan.

Published in The Express Tribune May 1^st, 2024.