Funding woes put 40,000 students at risk

Teachers not paid for months in merged districts

PESHAWAR:

Education programmes run by the Merged Areas Education Foundation (MAEF) in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa's merged districts are facing financial and administrative difficulties, threatening the education of around 40,000 students and leaving hundreds of teachers without salaries.

The foundation runs several programmes, including Literacy for All, Basic Education Community Schools (BECS) and the National Commission for Human Development (NCHD). Sources said four projects had reportedly been dropped from the annual work plan despite approval by the relevant forum, while new admissions under the scholarship programme had been suspended.

Established to improve literacy, enroll out-of-school children and expand access to education in militancy-hit areas, the foundation has implemented various projects over the past two decades. But its operations have been affected by administrative problems and alleged political interference over the past 14 months, sources said.

They alleged that officials from other departments had been appointed to key administrative posts through political influence, including teachers who had left their teaching duties to take up administrative positions. These appointments had affected the foundation's performance and the continuity of its programmes, they added.

The foundation operates around 420 community schools in the merged districts, serving nearly 40,000 children. Disruptions or closures could particularly affect students in remote areas with limited access to government schools.

Sources attributed prolonged salary delays to the expiry of project approval periods and a lack of funds. The original PC-I for the Literacy for All project expired on June 30, 2025, while those for BECS and NCHD ended on June 30, 2026.

Noor Nawaz, a community school teacher, said he and around 200 colleagues had not received salaries for two and a half years but continued to teach despite financial hardship.

He said teachers were increasingly concerned following the imposition of governor's rule and the declaration of an emergency in 12 districts. They remained uncertain about when their outstanding salaries would be paid and whether the education programmes would continue, he added.

Foundation officials said the Literacy for All teachers had been recruited in 2016 under an Annual Development Programme (ADP) project whose original PC-I expired on June 30, 2025.

A revised PC-I had been sent to the Elementary and Secondary Education Department (ESED) for approval and presented to the Pre-Provincial Development Working Party (Pre-PDWP), while the Finance Department had issued revenue clearance, they said.

Approval of the revised PC-I was in its final stages before the Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP), the officials said, adding that outstanding salaries and other dues would be paid once approval was granted and funds released.

They said community school teachers had been paid up to December 2024, but funds for subsequent salaries had not been released despite repeated requests to ESED.

The officials rejected allegations of political interference and appointments against merit, saying all administrative matters were being handled under approved rules and regulations.