PESHAWAR: Civil society organisations have urged the government to ensure provision of free and compulsory education to all children in line with Article 25-A of the Constitution.

The call was given during a meeting of the working group for girls’ education initiatives here on Tuesday.

Khewendo Kor, a civil society organisation, organised the event, where noted among participants were Mir Zaman of CRSD, Umar Orakzai of Alif Ailaan, Sikandar Khan of Dost Foundation, Tariq Iqbal of Win Organisation, Khalid Khan of Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child, Gulalai of Khwendo Kor and lawyer Mohammad Fayyaz.

The participants, who represented various civil society organisations, discussed shortage of educational facilities and a lack of the government’s will to provide educational facilities to the ‘neglected people.’

They said education was the fundamental right of all children and that it was the government’s duty to ensure its provision to children in every locality of the country.

The participants shared their experiences and urged the government to take drastic steps for improvement in literacy rate and said members of low-income groups should be encouraged to send children to schools and colleges.

They also discussed legislation on free and compulsory education under Article 25A of the Constitution and the role of education department for the purpose.

The participants urged the government to expedite the lawmaking on free and compulsory education and said they were ready to offer all possible cooperation and support for it.

They said by and large, the poor people sent children to workshops to earn and support families instead of sending them to schools for education.

The participants also discussed the role of civil society organisations in the rehabilitation of street children and gave suggestions for the control of child labour and education of street children. They stressed the need for joint efforts to save the children’s future by educating them.

The participants agreed to hold meetings with the government officials on provision of free and compulsory education to all children.

Published in Dawn, March 18th, 2015

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