Comprehensive planning and coordinated work are urgently needed to deliver the right to education to all Pakistani children as promised in Article 25A of the constitution, stated a memorandum issued at the end of a citizens’ dialogue with international donors here in Islamabad.
The speakers stressed that the citizens needed to be engaged in overhauling the education sector through right political and governmental actions. They said the 18th Amendment had unfolded both a serious challenge and a huge opportunity to set things right in education sector. They asserted that the provision of free and quality education was responsibility of the state, and all the governments were bound to commit their financial resources, embrace the private sector and ensure that all children might attend schools and learn there.
The dialogue was organised by Pakistan Coalition for Education (PCE), Society for the Access to Quality Education (SAQE), Asia South Pacific Association for Basic and Adult Education (ASPBAE) and Foundation of Open Society Institute.
The dialogue debated the findings of citizens’ perceptions about sector-wide approaches in education. The key findings suggested that the parents were disappointed and therefore disengaged from the public sector education system and therefore it was incumbent upon the political leadership to lead the corrective initiative.
