KARACHI, May 20: The Sindh Minister for Education and Literacy, Hamida Khuhro, has said that financial help from international donors like the World Bank and the European Commission would be a big thrust for education reforms to achieve the goal of quality education.

She said this while talking to a high-powered delegation of the EC, which met her on Saturday at her office.

The delegation comprised Jos Jhonckers, Alexis Hoare, Thorsten Bargfrede and Siddique Bhatti of the EC, Islamabad. The Secretary of Education and Literacy Department, Ghulam Ali Shah Pasha, and Chief Programme Manager of RSU, Iqbal Durrani, were also present in the meeting.

The delegation congratulated Hamida for the successful formulation of the education sector reforms plan in which donors are required to give budgetary support to the sector instead of support to projects due to the fact that projects in the past had failed to achieve targets.

Hamida assured the delegation that through the comprehensive plan of education sector reforms, they would be able to address all problems. She appreciated the support assured by the EC and the WB in this regard.

She also briefed the delegates about efforts being made for improving the quality of education in public sector educational institutions.

This, the minister said, was done by imparting training to the teaching manpower and by addressing the issues of the ratio of school dropouts.

She further informed the delegates that the federal government was also making efforts at various levels for updating the curriculum and bringing uniformity in the education sectors of all four provinces.

On the occasion, participants of the meeting discussed finalizing the agreement of financial help/grant of 39 million Euro from the EC for Sindh’s education reforms programme.The delegates assured that the grant money would be released in the next financial year for which an agreement was to be signed in the coming month.

Hamida said that budgetary support from the EC and the World Bank would help strengthen institutions and that the government would be able to provide sufficient infrastructure and missing facilities at various levels.

On the occasion, both sides agreed on continued consultation for achieve the targets.—APP