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| June 18, 2003 | Wednesday | Rabi-us-Sani 17, 1424 |
Tax rebate to be given for setting up schools, colleges
ISLAMABAD, June 17: The federal government will give considerable tax rebate for setting up of educational institutions in the private sector.
According to education ministry officials, the education minister, Zobaida Jalal, has decided to devise a comprehensive mechanism under which managers of private educational institutions will be given tax omissions.
Moreover, they said grants would also be provided for the establishment of educational institutions by the private sector, especially in the rural areas, through national and provincial education foundations.
They maintained that institutions already working in the private sector would be allowed to negotiate with donor agencies for financial assistance in collaboration with the education ministry.
With regard to other incentives that the ministry would be offering to the private sector for running schools/colleges and universities, the officials said plots would be provided in the residential schemes on reduced prices, besides rebate on income tax to encourage them to help the government in uplifting basic education in the country.
Those schools that are being run on non-profit basis will be exempted from all kinds of taxes.
The officials said the ministry had also decided to set up regulatory bodies at national and provincial levels to regulate activities and for smooth functioning of private educational institutions both at the college and university level.
They said the federal minister had cleared that this regulatory framework should not be misunderstood as government intervention in private sector education.
It is basically a step forward towards public-private partnership that had been hailed by the private sector and by all other segments of the society.
The federal government was urging upon the private sector to come forward and help the government in the noble cause.
Education is an essential and important mean to develop human resources and is also a necessary ingredient for sustainable socio-economic growth, the officials quoted the education minister as saying.
She said at the highest level of policy-making within the government, it had been conceded that investment in education contributed to the accumulation of human growth, the officials added.
She maintained that only education could help reduce poverty by increasing the productivity of the poor and also equip them with skills needed to fully participate in the society.
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