ISLAMABAD: Minister for Education and Professional Training Balighur Rehman Wednesday said that the Basic Education Community Schools would seize to exist immediately after the opening of formal schools in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).
Responding to a calling attention notice of Senator Hidayat Ullah in the upper house regarding the low salaries of teachers working in Basic Education Community Schools and non-regularisation of their services, the minister said that the teachers at the community schools were being paid only honoraria and not salaries.
He said that the community schools were working a multi-grade teaching system. “One teacher teaches various classes under one roof,” he said, adding that they were paid Rs2,400 as salary in 2013, which was enhanced to Rs2,800 per month and then Rs5,000 per month in 2013.
“In July 2017, the honoraria was further enhanced to Rs8,000,” he added.
He further said that there was no question of regularisation of community school teachers as they were only working as a make-shift arrangement and their services would end immediately after the opening of formal schools in their respective areas.
Earlier, Senator Hidayatullah said that as many as 800 teachers were teaching in 400 Basic Education Community Schools in FATA. They were only being paid Rs8,000 per month which was a violation of government rules.
Their services should be regularised and they must be paid at least Rs15,000 per month salary, he had said.
Separately, Balighur Rehman also said that the government is committed to the promotion of quality education in the country.
The minister said this while addressing as chief guest at the launching ceremony of Non-Formal Education Management Information System (NFMIS) web version at Academy of Educational Planning and Management (AEPAM) in the capital on Wednesday.
He said that the government has always been keen to achieve excellence in education and wanted to improve the quality of education in the country.
The minister appreciated AEPAM for launching NFEMIS web version in collaboration with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and said that AEPAM today is a vibrant organisation.
He said that collection of data regarding non-formal education is very important and it manifests that we are moving forward also in the field of non-formal education in the country.
Baligh also emphasised the importance of non-formal education and said that paying special attention towards non-formal education was also very important. We cannot progress without focusing on non-formal education in the country, he said.
He added that government had included non-formal education in education policy while realising its importance.