Moalims

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah has announced to increase the annual budget of Sindh Education Foundation from Rs 2.2 billion, and approved more than three education promoting schemes.
The Sindh chief minister also assigned the task to the SEF to enhance its existing enrolment from 262,000 to 412,000 students, and also to ensure quality of education in the educational facilities under their control.
He announced this while presiding over the meeting of Sindh Education Foundation at the CM House in Karachi.
Addressing the meeting, the Sindh chief minister said that to enhance enrolment, bring the out-of-school children into the educational net and raising the standard of education were the great challenges for the government and society as well. He said that the track record of the Sindh Education Foundation was very good and it reveals that it has performed well in the past.
He said that he was optimistic that it will “keep up the good work” in the future as well. The chief minister, while referring the proposals presented by SEF Managing Director Naheed Shah, announced to increase the annual budget of SEF from its current annual allocation of Rs 2.2 billion to implement its education promoting schemes. He also gave approval for raising per child subsidy from Rs 350 to 450 for primary section, from Rs 450 to Rs 600 for elementary section and from Rs 550 to Rs 700 for secondary education.
He also approved the endowment fund of Rs 5 billion and also directed the Sindh Finance Department to release the pending amount to the SEF. The Sindh chief minister allowed hiring of 300 interns to beef up the quality in schools and teaching math’s, English and science and supporting audio-video (visual) and IT in the SEF schools. The Sindh chief minister approved the scheme of using existing government schools for starting evening shift by the SEF in collaboration with educators in private sector under the subsidy scheme. Sindh Education Foundation MD Naheed Shah, while briefing the meeting, explained the financial difficulties being experiences by her organisation in running the schools and management together. She said that annual allocation of SEF in current budget was Rs 2.2 billion but 77.56 percent of the total budget was being consumed only on the children’s subsidy, while the remaining amount was left for salaries of teachers and administrative staff, assessments and training activities, besides marketing operations. Giving the statistical data, she said the SEF has total 5,237 schools to run, out of which 2,376 schools were SEF Schools in un-served/backward areas in the province. In addition to that, the SEF was running 1,300 schools under Integrated Education Learning Programme (IELP), 662 schools under Promoting Private Schools in Rural Sindh (PPRS) programme, 250 schools under Rural Based Community Schools (RBCS) and 150 early child learning schools (ELP). Moreover, 485 school are being run under Adopt A School Programme (AASP), 13 under Women Learning Education Programme (WLEP) and one for child labour education programme.
She said that the SEF has planned to enhance enrolment by another 150,000 children in its education net within a year. She said that the scheme has been made to encourage private sector to run middle schools in existing government/private schools in afternoon/evening shift, especially at the union councils that are lacking such a facility. In addition to that, 40,000 children would be brought in the schools under Promoting Private Schools in Rural Sindh (PPRS) with the assistance of World Bank.
Similarly enrolment of 60,000 more children has been targeted under the Rural Based Community School Programme (RBCS), while 50,000 students will be enrolled by strengthening middle schools and starting evening shifts in existing government schools. She said that main emphasis was being given on standard of education and providing standard education at the areas where there is no school available. Senior Minister for Education Nisar Khuhro, Sindh Chief Secretary Muhammad Siddique Memon , Additional Chief Secretary Muhammad Wasim, Education Secretary Fazul Pechuho, Secretary on Universities and Boards Syed Mumtaz Ali Shah, Finance Secretary Sohail Rajput and other officers from the Sindh Education Foundation attended the meeting and participated in the deliberation. Almost all the participants lauded the performance of the SEF and supported its future programme.