ISLAMABAD, Sept 14: United States Ambassador to Pakistan Nancy Powell has said Bush administration and USAID will continue to explore new avenues in the field of educational cooperation between the two countries.

Ms Powell stated this in a meeting with Federal Education Minister Lt-Gen (retired) Javed Ashraf here on Tuesday. She also expressed satisfaction with the Education Ministry's efforts for the progress of education sector in the country.

The envoy appreciated the steps taken by the government and the ministry in making education accessible to all, particularly in far flung areas that were neglected in the past.

She said the country would soon achieve the Education for All targets, as was evident by the revolutionary steps being taken by the political and administrative bosses of the ministry.

The teacher-turned-diplomat told the minister for education that the US would continue its assistance to the education sector of the country, as the Congress was likely to pass a financial bill amounting to $200 million for the health and education sector. She termed the current educational cooperation between the US and Pakistan a pillar of bilateral relations.

Briefing the envoy, the minister said his emphasis would be on ensuring proper implementation of the policies of his predecessor. He told the ambassador that he would monitor all the educational projects in the country, and would urge both the international partners and the donor agencies, including USAID, to continue their support for Pakistan's education sector.

He said all the international donors, including Unicef, Jaica, Unesco and USAID etc., were satisfied with the spending of grants and aid given to the Ministry of Education.

Mr Qazi also briefed the ambassador on the projects and plans prepared by the ministry and their implementation down to the grassroots. He said the government was putting all its effort in improving basic education and introducing new concepts in the system.

He said the current budgetary allocation to the education sector was a record in the history of the country. No government prior to 1999 had paid attention towards education sector to such an extent. The credit goes to the present democratic government to assign a priority status to education, he added.

He also briefed the ambassador on the steps taken by the government to eliminate child labour and to bring the out-of- school children to primary schools. He said under the Education Sector Reforms, the primary objective of the government was to make education accessible to all in the country.

The minister said Pakistan would meet the target of Education for All till 2015, which would be a big achievement. He also told the ambassador about the introduction of human rights education in educational institutions, and establishment of science labs in FATA schools.