QUETTA: The Aga Khan University Examination Board (AKU-EB) has signed an agreement with the government of Balochistan and United Nations International Children’s Fund (Unicef) as part of the larger Balochistan Basic Education Programme funded by the European Union (EU).

Under the agreement which was signed last week, the AKU-EB will take on a technical support and capacity development role for several governmental assessment bodies in the province, including the Balochistan Assessment and Examination Commission (BAEC), the Bureau of Curriculum, Policy, Planning and Implementation Unit (PPIU), the Directorate of Schools and the Professional Institute of Teacher Education (PITE).

Speaking at the event, the AKU board’s director Dr Shehzad Jeeva, said that it was a privilege and honour for the AKU-EB to be in a position where it was able to impart good practices in education to institutions that function in an area of Pakistan that demanded greater national attention.

“The work that we undertake today shall serve as the foundation stone that tomorrow’s educational institutions will benefit from,” he added.

The project will see AKU-EB spearhead a series of training exercises aimed at empowering employees of the aforementioned institutions and help strengthen the public education system of Balochistan.

AKU-EB Assessment Associate Director Dr Naveed Yousuf, who is also the director of this project, highlighted the importance of good assessment practices. “I have high hopes that the participants will be better able to contribute to the educational development of Balochistan by the end of this project,” he said.

Published in Dawn, April 23rd, 2018