PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has decided to declare an educational emergency in the districts with 50 percent or more children out of school.
The decision was made during a meeting of the elementary and secondary education department with Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur in the chair, according to an official statement from the Chief Minister’s Secretariat issued here on Monday.
The meeting discussed ways to improve the quality of education in government schools, particularly the issue of out-of-school children.
It decided that in the districts, where the rate of out-of-school children was 50 percent or more, an education emergency would be declared.
The meeting also accorded in principle approval to the proposed actions under the education emergency plan and decided that comprehensive and multi-faceted measures would be taken to increase student enrolment in schools. The schemes to support various activities will be included in the upcoming budget.
Mr Gandapur ordered the preparation of a comprehensive action plan, taking into account the specific conditions of each district, to ensure effective implementation of the education emergency plan.
He said different models and options should be explored to ensure the provision of educational facilities in the affected areas and that the issue of out-of-school children was a national issue and required immediate attention.
“While the current provincial government has made good progress in increasing school enrolment, there is a need for even more effective efforts,” he said.
The chief minister expressed concern over the alarming rate of out-of-school children in some districts and said that an education emergency was a necessary step to reduce the number and improve enrollment rates.
He said that the next year’s enrollment campaign would be more effective and result-oriented, with special attention being given to girls’ education, as the girls’ absence from school was a matter of grave concern.
The chief minister said it was unacceptable that in some schools, students sat on the floor adding that the province could no longer afford such conditions.
He stated that it was the provincial government’s mission that no child in any public school should be forced to sit on the floor.
Mr Gandapur said all government schools should be equipped with proper washrooms and clean drinking water.
“Education is the top priority of our government and more and more funds will be allocated for the educational sector in the upcoming budget,” he said.
The chief minister said fact-based data must be made available to ensure the effective and prudent use of resources and that all activities should be driven by accurate statistics.
“In order to improve the quality of education in public schools, measures should be taken to enhance the teachers’ capacity, implement 100 per cent merit in new recruitment and establish schools in rented buildings in areas where they are urgently needed,” he said.
Mr Gandapur said schools with higher enrolment rates should be upgraded in the upcoming budget so that students continued their education without disruption.
He emphasised strengthening the monitoring system and taking steps to provide missing facilities such as laboratories, examination halls and other essential infrastructure in existing schools.
The meeting also reviewed progress on the ongoing development projects of the elementary and secondary education department and discussed proposed projects for the Annual Development Program of the next fiscal year.
Minister for elementary and secondary education Faisal Tarakai, adviser to the chief minister on finance Muzammil Aslam, the chief secretary, the additional chief secretary (planning) and senior officials of the relevant departments attended the meeting.-
Published in Dawn, May 13th, 2025
