PESHAWAR, June 7: Corporal punishment and schools located in far off places in rural areas are the main reasons for the highest dropout rate among girls of NWFP. The dropout rate among boys is the lowest for Balochistan and Punjab, says the State of Pakistan Children report 2004-2005.

The annual report released by the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (Sparc) revealed that the dropout rate among girls was higher in the NWFP than in any other part of the country.

According to Pakistan Integrated Household Survey, some three years ago, the children of 10-18 year group attended primary school occasionally and 15 per cent left before completing primary school, the Sparc report said.

Many children fail to make the transition from primary to Middle school, especially in rural areas where 33 per cent of girls and 24 per cent boys left studying before reaching class six.

Half of the children who enrol in the school leave before completing class V and among them majority are girls, the report said. Even those who complete primary school have low learning achievements. Children in the rural areas particularly girls face problems in enrolling and completing school than the children from wealthier urban families.

The report interlinked the dropout rate with the low household income. In rural areas, some 53 per cent of the poor children drop out before completing class six. Twenty-nine per cent of boys and 19 per cent of girls discontinued their primary education because it was too expensive for them, the report revealed.

Only 67 per cent of villages have a school for girls within one kilometre of the village, as compared to 85 per cent that have a school for boys within the same distance. This is one reason many girls are forced to leave school, particularly in Balochistan and Sindh, the Sparc report added.

Another reason for dropping out is the prevalence of corporal punishment in schools. Corporal punishment is allowed by Section 89 of Pakistan Penal Code for children under 12 years provided such punishment does not inflict injuries. In that case, the perpetrator can be prosecuted under Sections 323 and 325 of the PPC.

Sparc has urged the government to take concrete steps to stop the tendency. The Unesco has also recommended to spend at least five to seven per cent of the GDP on education to improve the literacy rate and provide primary schooling to all.