SWABI, Oct 24: NWFP Governor Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah said on Friday the nation could not attain prosperity without imparting modern education to women.

He was speaking at the inaugural ceremonies of Girls Degree Colleges in Zaida and Topi here. Both colleges have been established by the Frontier Education Foundation.

The governor said the nations who gave quality education to women had made tremendous progress in all other fields and achieved economic stability.

“When there are no restrictions on female education in Islam, why should not we send our girls to get education,” he stressed, adding “in the face of new challenges, we must arm women with education.”

The governor said sectarianism had given birth to illiteracy and if people got proper education we would not face such problems. Referring to the tobacco crop, he said the companies had exploited the growers. He said the government wanted to make tobacco an exportable commodity.