PESHAWAR, Sept 29: NWFP Governor Khalil-ur-Rehman has said that education and socio-economic development will play an important role in changing the mindset of tribesmen.

The government had realized the ground realities and taken a number of initiatives in this regard, he told the participants of Allied Officers War Course-2005. A delegation, comprising 14 members from friendly countries and faculty members of the National Defence College Islamabad, called on him at the Governor’s House on Thursday.

According to the governor, a visible change has been witnessed in the attitude of the tribesmen towards development. Now they demanded services in social sector, which was quite contrary to their past attitude, he explained.

In reply to a question, the governor said the law and order situation in Fata was under control. However, he added that only two of the seven agencies and six Frontier Regions had some disturbance and that too was because of some unwanted and foreign elements in the border areas.

Answering a question, the governor said volunteer repatriation of Afghan refugees to their homeland was a continuous process and the government was facilitating the process in collaboration with the UNHCR.

The tribesmen had been reluctant to accept development, but now they had realized its importance, he said.

The government was committed to bring progress and prosperity to these backward areas and had geared up efforts to provide maximum financial resources for the purpose.

He said more than 5,000 educational institutions had been set up in Fata.