September 06, 2006	Wednesday	Sha'aban 12, 1427

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NAWABSHAH, Sept 5: Elected representatives of the district on Tuesday criticised the National Commission for Human Development for its failure to reopen closed schools and solve the underlying issues that afflict the education system.

Speaking at an introductory meeting of the NCHD, they said that they even were unaware of the commission’s functioning in the district.

District Nazim Faryal Talpur presided over the meeting.

In Sindh, the NCHD is operating in eleven districts including Ghotki, Thatta, Badin, Naushahro Feroze, Jacobabad, Khairpur, Larkana, Mirpurkhas, Sukkur, Tharparkar and Umerkot.

According to some figures about 205 primary, lower-secondary and secondary schools are closed in Nawabshah district and awaiting government efforts to be reopened.

MPA Ghulam Qadir Chandio said that UC Daleldero was included in the adult literacy programme but none of the people of the UC, and even he himself, were familiar with the NCHD functioning.

When the MPA asked the officials of the NCHD to provide list of schools where they had worked, they failed to present such a list.

MPA Ali Ahmed Shah said that so many commissions and NGOs had been set up and they were only minting money by presenting fake facts and figures.

The MPA said that if the NCHD and the NGOs genuinely wanted to work, they must reopen the closed schools first.

UC Pir Zakir nazim Syed Munir Shah alleged that officials of the NCHD had presented fake figures about their operations.

He said that no official or volunteer of the commission had so far visited the UC and contacted elected representatives, let alone people.

Ms Talpur called upon the officials that all-out efforts should be made to provide basic education to women.

She asked officials to coordinate with UC nazims and MPAs for getting better results of the programme.

NCHD regional coordinator Imtiaz Bhatti said that the commission was striving to promote human development through primary education, mass literacy, primary healthcare and capacity development to improve the social sector.

He claimed that some 1.745 million children of 5-7 years age had been enrolled in primary classes and set up 2,542 feeder primary community-based schools.

NCHD assistant coordinator Afshan Soomro said that teams had met with villagers in various parts of selected union councils and started work.

She said that the NCHD was about to start collection of data of up to nine-year-old children through door-to-door survey.

Ms Soomro said that the commission was giving a top priority to setting up district education boards and strengthening school management committees.