PESHAWAR: Junior officers have long been managing the women education system in all districts of the province except one due to the elementary and secondary education department’s failure to appoint the BPS-19 district education officers (female).

The relevant officials told Dawn on Saturday that currently, all the 25 districts of the province had DEOs (male) but there was only one DEO (female), who was posted to Abbottabad.

They said junior women education officers (BPS-18) had been given the additional charge of DEOs (female) in districts other than Abbottabad for around three years.

The officials said by the end of 2012, a single male executive district officer (education) serving in BPS-19 used to work as the executive head of education department at district level along with two deputy district education officers (male) and (female) in BPS-18.

They said the deputy DEOs (male) were tasked with handling affairs of boys schools and DEOs (female) those of girls schools.

According to the officials, after the ANP government partially implemented the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Local Government Act 2012, the administration of the district level education was divided into male and female ones on January 1, 2013.

Appointment of BPS-19 education officers in 24 of total 25 districts awaited long

At that time, the E&SE department decided that BPS-19 officers both men and women would be the executive officers (male) and (female) in their respective districts.

Thereafter, the education department posted all male officers as BPS-19 DEOs. They’re already appointed for the purpose to the management cadre.

However, only one deputy DEO (female) was appointed DEO in Abbottabad.

The officials said since January 2013 when the administration of men’s and women’s education was segregated, the education department hadn’t appointed DEOs (female) in all other districts.

They said the education department had tasked junior women DEOs with supervising senior principals of high and higher secondary schools had distributed the education department hierarchy.

The officials said in the absence of permanent DEOs (female), the senior most principals of the girls’ high and higher secondary schools serving in BPS-19 and BPS-20 were answerable to juniors i.e. acting DEOs (female).

An educationist said one couldn’t expect good administration under the current circumstances when juniors were tasked with monitor seniors.

He said currently, the education department’s hierarchy (female) at district level stood disturbed.

When contacted, E&SE minister Mohammad Atif Khan said the department had been considering different ways to resolve the issue, including appointment of competent women officers in BPS-19 to promote girls’ education.

“A proposal is under consideration to appoint officers with qualification in management sciences as DEOs (female),” he said.

The minister said the previous government had introduced the management cadre in the education department for managing things at district and directorate levels but all the appointees were teachers instead of the people having degrees in management.

He said the criteria made by the last government for the appointment of officers to the management cadre was faulty.

“We have planned training of the management cadre officers to enhance their capacity,” he said, adding such officers had never undergone office management training.

Published in Dawn, November 22nd, 2015