First step towards school autonomy in Sindh

School Specific Budget (SSB) marks a significant shift from the highly-centralised bureaucratic control of schools' budget towards devolving limited financial authority to in-charge of educational institutions (headmasters/principals) at school level. For decades, public schools have suffered from lack of basic facilities, discouraging parents from sending their children to school. The situation worsened after education was declared free and compulsory from primary to secondary level, as government schools were barred from charging even a nominal fee that had traditionally helped meet everyday needs such as purchasing chalks and duster, repainting blackboards or repairing desks, chairs and ceiling fans. As a result, schools became dependent on an over-centralised system in which even minor purchases required multiple approvals, cumbersome procurement procedures and lengthy compliance requirements.

This excessive centralisation stripped schools of the ability to maintain a function and welcoming learning environment. Many schools gradually fell into neglect, with crumbling infrastructure and poorly-maintained classrooms becoming a visible symbol of administrative paralysis. Unsurprisingly, such conditions have contributed to Sindh's deepening education crisis. According to the latest report of Pakistan Economic Survey, around 7.8 million children in the province remain out of school - including nearly 1.2 million dropouts and another 6.6 million who have never entered a classroom.

Given the scale and depth of Sindh's education crisis, a dramatic turnaround within the remaining months of the current fiscal year is neither realistic nor administratively feasible. Yet, the initiative still represents an important first step in the right direction after decades of debate over decentralising limited authority from distant bureaucratic structure to the school level. What makes this reform particularly noteworthy is that, so far, neither the federal government nor any other province has attempted a comparable shift in school-level financial empowerment on this scale.

For that reason, the initiative offers a rare glimmer of hope, not only for students and teachers, but also for parents who have long watched public schools deteriorate in both physical condition and learning standards. If implemented transparently and consistently, even limited financial autonomy could enable schools to address everyday operational problems far more efficiently, gradually improving the learning environment and restoring some public confidence in the state education system.

The Government of Sindh has introduced several unprecedented measures for the utilisation of the Rs18 billion allocated directly to schools under the initiative. Under existing financial rules, whether at the federal or provincial level, financial authority - Drawing Disbursement Officer (DDO) powers - is ordinarily restricted to gazetted officers in Grade 17 or above. In a notable departure from this long-established practice, however, financial powers have now been delegated to head teachers/principals, many of whom are in Grade 14. Equally significant is the removal of multiple bureaucratic layers as schools no longer require prior approval from higher authorities for routine expenditures under the allocated funds.

Under the scheme, individual schools may receive allocations ranging from Rs216,000 to Rs33.3 million, depending on their size and requirements. The distribution formula has primarily been based on two indicators: total enrollment and the number of classrooms in each school. To operationalise the initiative, the provincial finance department undertook the complex task of creating 34,106 separate cost centres/accounts for headteachers across Sindh. The scale of this administrative restructuring itself reflects the government's attempt to empower schools to bring about the desired improvements on the ground.

Despite its promising design and simplified procedures, the initiative is currently facing teething troubles and have struggled to gain momentum. To date, only around one per cent of the allocated budget has reportedly been utilised. The finance department released the first quarterly tranche in July 2025, and nearly Rs13 billion out of Rs18 billion total allocation has already been transferred to schools, which is an impressive administrative achievement in itself. Yet the overall pace of utilisation remains extremely low.

Ironically, the spending framework itself has been made unusually simple. Schools have been authorised to use funds for a wide range of needs, including WASH facilities, sanitation, furniture repair and procurement, building maintenance, stationery, co-curricular activities, solar panels, fans and other essential requirements. Hardly any routine school needs been excluded from the permissible expenditure list. In addition, a digital reporting mechanism has been introduced through which headteachers are required to upload pre- and post-improvement photographs along with invoices and expenditure details. To support implementation, Pakistan Institute of Public Finance Accountants trained 502 headteachers for drawing and disbursement role as master trainers, who subsequently conducted district-level cascading sessions supplemented by online guidance material.

The problem, therefore, appears to be less procedural and more psychological and institutional. Many headteachers seem reluctant to exercise newly-devolved financial and procurement powers, possibly due to a deeply ingrained fear of accountability proceedings, procedural errors, future audit objections or any other factor. This hesitation is understandable in a governance culture where lower tier officials have historically been conditioned to avoid decision-making rather than take initiative. Unless this underlying administrative mindset is recognised and addressed, financial devolution alone may not produce the intended transformation.

At the same time, debate should move beyond mere expenditures. Timely and transparent utilisation of funds is important, but spending itself cannot be treated as the ultimate measure of success. The initiative will only justify itself if financial autonomy translates into measurable improvements in enrolment, student retention and learning outcomes. Likewise, school-level funding should not evolve into a passive entitlement mechanism. Instead, it must become part of a broader governance reform in which effective school leadership is incentivised through performance-based indicators, professional recognition and career advancement. Otherwise, the initiative risks becoming merely a decentralisation of expenditure rather than a meaningful reform tied to performance, incentives and accountability for educational outcomes.