Sindh Minister for Education and Mineral Development Syed Sardar Ali Shah said that despite the federal government declaring an education emergency a few months ago, there was no clarity on working with the provinces to improve education.
There was no consultation with them before the announcement of the education emergency, he said while speaking to the media after attending a ceremony as chief guest organized by the Sindh Education Foundation (SEF) at a hotel in Karachi, he said in a statement issued on Saturday.
The minister mentioned that due to heavy rains, 20,000 schools in Sindh have been affected and two million children are forced to study in harsh conditions, with school buildings no longer suitable for sitting. It is surprising that the federal government has declared an education emergency, yet there is no clear policy for the country’s 26 million out-of-school children.
He urged the federal government to consider the children of Sindh as the children of the nation and play its role in restoring the flood-hit schools. He expressed hope that the promises made by the Federal Government to rebuild rain-damaged schools would soon be fulfilled.
Shah suggested that the federal government should consult with all provinces on the issue of out-of-school children. Earlier, the Sindh Education Foundation organized a ceremony at a hotel in Karachi to honor the school adopters who took the responsibility of reactivating defunct government schools.
Sindh Education Minister Zahid Ali Abbasi, Executive Director of Sindh Education Foundation, Qazi Kabir, former Governor of Sindh and School Bearer Lt. Gen (retd) Moinuddin Haider and other adopted school children, teachers and students were present on the occasion. present.
During the ceremony, Syed Sardar Ali Shah appreciated the adoptive schools and said, “We admire those who have not only adopted schools but also accepted our shortcomings, which we look at with great respect. Adopting a school is akin to the care of a mother, assuming the noble responsibility of educating the nation’s children.”
He emphasized that thanks to the adoption policy, 319 schools have been reactivated and 125,000 children are being educated. The provincial minister emphasized that everyone must play their part and light their own candle of responsibility. For the first time, he wrote a letter to lawmakers asking them to take responsibility for at least three schools in his constituencies. “We also have to pay attention to the schools that are working,” he added.
Education Minister Zahid Ali Abbasi said that Sindh was the first province to implement the school adoption policy, which brought clear benefits. He added that Sindh had led many initiatives for the development of education and those who came to adopt the schools were driven by the spirit of service. These individuals deserve a lot of praise.
Sindh Education Foundation MD Qazi Kabir mentioned that many schools can be improved by this policy and school adopters should be appreciated at every level so that more people can join this noble cause. The school adoption policy was created by the government and improves schools in the public sector.
He shared that in 1998, SEF in collaboration with the Government of Sindh had launched the “Adopt a School Programme”. More than 100 foster schools responsibly manage 319 defunct government schools across Sindh, a result of the vision of SEF founder Prof Dr. Anita Ghulam Ali and Sindh Government’s earnest efforts for the advancement of education.
Later, the Minister of Education inspected the models submitted by the students of the admitted schools and interacted with them to gain insights.
