KARACHI, Oct 18: Sindh Education and Literacy Minister Dr Hamida Khuhro, stressing the need for better and result-oriented utilization of Euro 39 million grant-in-aid offered by the European Commission under its Sector Support Programme, said that through reforms and changes are required in the education sector from top to school level for enhancement of enrolment and literacy rate by bringing all the government tiers and donor agencies at one platform.

She was presiding over a review meeting to finalize the utilization plan of the EC grant for the promotion of elementary education in Sindh at her office.

Mr Peter R Portier, the economist who is providing technical assistance to the Sindh Education department on the said project, briefed the minister on its progress.

Sindh Education Secretary Nadir Ali Markhiani, Special Secretary Syed Sohail Akbar Shah and Thatta DCO Ahmed Bux Narejo were also present in meeting.

Dr Khuhro said that the identification of the problems being faced at the school level was direly needed to assess ground realities and form and launch a comprehensive work plan in a coordinated manner to achieve the goal of qualitative education.

Pointing out the high dropout ratio of children at primary and middle levels, she said that because the present education system in Sindh did not offer any solution to economic problems of the people, therefore the poor preferred to keep their children engaged at work places.

Dr Khuhro, in this regard, emphasized the need to launch a campaign through the media to create awareness among parents about the importance of education and to motivate them to send their children to schools.

She said that the problem of poverty could only be overcome through making the education job-oriented and by offering solution to the people's economic problems.

The minister said that transparent recruitment process in the department, which was under way, would support the efforts to ensure standard education at public sector schools.

She further said that school-based and non-transferable contractual appointments of teachers would ensure that they stayed in their respective areas and added that 'ghost-teachers' could also be checked thus.

Mr Portier informed the minister that the EC was willing to initiate its programme with special emphasis on education, for which funds would be released from July, 2005, the beginning of the Sindh government's next financial year.

He said that the EC's Formation Mission was also due in Sindh on Nov 20, to finalize with the Sindh government a draft proposal for the utilization of the euro 39 Million grant-in-aid.

The meeting agreed upon the idea to start work from a specific district-area under the EC-funded project, and selected Thatta district for the purpose for being more manageable and accessible, to introduce medium and long-term reforms in the education sector there.

In Thatta, the United Nation's International Children's Emergency Fund (Unicef), Education Sector Reformed Assistance (ESRA) and the National Commission for Human Development (NCHD), are already engaged in various education projects, while the Sindh government, through education department, will also spend Rs4259.39 million under its programme in three phases from 2004 to 2015-16.

This programme includes Rs3153.66 million for primary education, Rs153.40 million for adult literacy and Rs952.33 million for early childhood education.

The school/education census 2002-03 reveals that Sindh has total enrolment of 32,839,896 children in its total 44,149 schools, including 92,047 boys and 46,861 girls, against the total population of 253,948 of four to nine years age group.

The dropout ratio of children after primary education in rural areas of Sindh, including Thatta, is around 28 per cent among boys and 27 per cent among the girls.-PPI