ISLAMABAD: Education Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain on Wednesday said that the government has been taking steps in order to make Islamabad a city with a literacy rate of 100 percent.

Speaking at an award ceremony organised by Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) in connection with World Teachers Day, the minister said that efforts are underway for achieving 100pc literacy in Islamabad. He said a new course should be added to the syllabus with a special focus on character building of students.

The event took place in the auditorium of Islamabad Model College for Girls, F-7/4 and was attended by the officials of FDE and the ministry, principals of schools and colleges of Islamabad.

The minister appreciated the efforts of teachers and heads of institutions. He also awarded shields and certificates to the principals of several schools and colleges for producing outstanding results. He was of the view that teachers are an integral part of society and they build future generations. He directed the FDE to explore options to give some honorarium as well to outstanding teachers.

FDE Director General Prof Dr Ikram Ali Malik also praised their efforts, adding that a good and hardworking teacher is an inspiration for students. Teachers are role models of the youth which is why they should strive to be the best ones.

On the sidelines of the event, president of School Teacher Association Malik Ameer also held a meeting with the minister, informing him that teachers of schools and colleges have been facing serious issues. He told the minister that over Rs2 billion for hiring are pending with the federal government, causing delay in release of hiring fund and teachers are upset due to this. The minister assured him that this issue would be resolved and asked him to visit the education ministry in the coming days for a briefing.

Meanwhile, a number of daily wage teachers, who have been working in FDE-run schools and colleges for around one decade staged a protest demonstration outside the Ministry of Education. They demanded regularisation of their services and raised slogans criticising the government.

It is relevant to note here there are over 1,000 teaching and non-teaching officials have been serving in various educational institutions of FDE for years. Their regularisation issues have been taken up by standing committees and other forums on many occasions but to no avail.

Published in Dawn, October 6th, 2022