Sindh's classrooms leave millions behind

Education official reveals 7.6m children out of school amid policy challenges

KARACHI:

Despite having more than 53,000 public and private educational institutions, Sindh still has nearly 7.6 million children out of school, a senior education official said while describing the situation as one of the country's most pressing educational challenges.

The figures were shared by Dr Aftab Ahmed Sheikh, Director of the Sindh Education Policy Commission, School Education and Literacy Department, Government of Sindh, while addressing the First International Scholars Conference on "Digital Society and Social Change" organised by the Department of Education at the University of Karachi's Chinese Teachers Memorial Auditorium. Dr Sheikh said Sindh had formulated a comprehensive education policy designed according to the province's cultural, geographical, industrial and environmental needs, along with several sector-specific sub-policies.

He said the Sindh Education Policy Commission's responsibilities included identifying social challenges, developing practical policy solutions, overseeing implementation, monitoring progress and conducting periodic policy reviews.

Discussing the expanding role of artificial intelligence (AI), Dr Sheikh said the technology was increasingly being considered a quick answer to every problem, but its effective and responsible use required a strong conceptual framework and clear strategic direction.

Highlighting the scale of the education gap, he said Sindh had more than 41,000 government schools and around 12,000 to 13,000 private schools, serving nearly nine million students. However, around 7.6 million children remain outside the education system, leaving a significant portion of the province's school-age population without formal education.