December 26, 2008	Friday	Zilhaj 27, 1429

KARACHI, Dec 25: Following the expression of serious reservations by the finance department over the methodology and disbursement of grants from an endowment fund, the Sindh government has asked the education secretary to submit a detailed report of the funds disbursed so far along with the beneficiaries.

Sources privy to the functioning of the fund told Dawn that in a recent meeting, when the issue of the use of the endowment fund came up for discussion, questions regarding its transparency were raised.

The Sindh government had created the endowment fund with an initial amount of Rs1 billion for needy students seeking higher education.

The fund was created by the government as there was a realisation that with the growth of the economy, there would be demand for a highly trained workforce to run modern industries and financial institutions as well as highly skilled and qualified teachers for the seats of learning.

Along with growth in the private sector, the government was also paying due attention to upgrading public sector institutions. As a result, there was an acute shortage of qualified professionals for such institutions.

Besides the need of a highly qualified workforce, there was also the realisation in the Pakistan People’s Party-led government that the middle class in both urban and rural areas have been paying more attention to giving a good education to their children and despite hardships, providing them education in private educational institutions.

But after the completion of their education from local institutions they could not afford the expenditures of higher education. In order to encourage such qualified youths to access higher education, the government had created the endowment fund and was keen to see it working in a transparent manner so that the maximum number of meritorious youths could benefit from the fund, insiders said.

During the meeting, when some of the ministers expressed their ignorance of the rules and procedures regarding eligibility for the disbursement of grants from the fund and whether it was made operational, the need for due circulation of the rules and procedures to institutions concerned in particular was highlighted, so that deserving youths seeking higher education could benefit from it, in particular those who, despite achieving high grades, could not make it for want of funds.