KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Monday announced that 4650 high enrollment schools have been selected for massive rehabilitation and infrastructure overhaul to provide the missing facilities.
The chief minister was speaking to World Bank delegation led by Country Director Patchamuthu Illangovan to discuss the conclusion of Sindh education reforms programme launched in 2014-18.
Furthermore, another 554 schools have been selected to upgrade to elementary level again. He said they are focusing on a strategy to ensure student progression beyond grade five, and to equip all post-primary schools with science and computer labs to bring facilities which can gradually strengthen learning outcomes.
CM Sindh said that in the era of the fourth industrial revolution many of the major drivers of transformation affecting global industries are expected to have a significant impact on jobs, ranging from job displacement, labour productivity to widening skills gaps.
Therefore, to prevent a worst case scenario, technological change accompanied by talent shortages, mass unemployment and growing inequality, the provision of new skills to workers will be critical. He added that technology could be continuously leveraged to reskill employees.
He said his government is taking tough actions to improve the education sector through a three -pronged strategy: addressing education access and infrastructure gaps by improving financial allocations, improving human resource by competitive test-based recruitment of teachers and head masters, and regularly assessing children’s learning outcomes.
He thanked the World Bank for their financial and technical support in the education and skills sector. World Bank country director appreciated the efforts of CM Sindh and lauded his initiative of operating schools under the public-private partnership mode and assured of his full support for the purpose.
200 girls schools to be operated under PPP mode
The chief minister said they fully realise the critical importance of girls education, and would provide many benefits in terms of overall socio- economic development of the country. This helps in raising per capita income and family incomes and wellbeing as girls become equipped to enter the job market.
He also said that presently 14 schools have been outsourced to private partners, while the provincial government bears all expenditures including staff salaries, electricity bills, maintenance etc. He added that 200 more schools will be given under private management.
The chief minister said that they have finalised the ‘Sindh Nutrition Programme’ with the World Bank which involves multi-sector interventions to improve nutrition in mothers and children and to contain stunting. Furthermore, they have finalised the early childhood policy which recognises and enrolls students in kindergarten.
He said that they still have huge challenges with a large number of out of school children and unemployed youth. He said it is imperative for government, development partners and civil society to synergize resources and efforts to tackle this challenge.
