ISLAMABAD: After completion of civil and renovation work, 35 more schools will be handed over to the Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) this week as the missing facilities project nears completion.

Officials of the education ministry and FDE said out of 167 schools, work has been completed in 71, while 35 more will be completed this week.

They added that work is simultaneously under way in the remaining 61 schools, which will be completed by the end of December this year.

Under the missing facilities project, FDE has carried out renovation in 167 schools, along with the provision of furniture and other facilities. Besides civil work, the construction of around 400 new classrooms is also part of the project.

Officials say out of 167 schools, work has been completed in 71 institutions

Officials said that out of the total, 200 classrooms have been constructed, and work on the remaining will be completed within the next three months.

“There is no compromise on the quality of work as we have a three-tier monitoring system. The Education Ministry, FDE, and school principals are part of monitoring this project,” said an FDE official. He said the incumbent education secretary, Nadeem Mahbub, has been focusing on this project to ensure it is completed as soon as possible without compromising quality.

“Secretary Education is regularly monitoring this project and every 15 days he chairs a meeting to get progress updates,” the official said.

He added that the secretary had also visited several schools to review progress.

“Under this project, FDE is providing the best facilities to students, but 31 rural schools were totally ignored,” said another official, adding that facilities also need to be provided in these schools in line with the standing committee’s directions.

It is relevant to note that the National Assembly Standing Committee, while appreciating the education ministry for its initiatives under this project, expressed concern over the exclusion of 31 rural schools.

After visiting five rural schools, the committee highlighted missing facilities and directed that the same level of facilities be provided in these institutions as well. FDE officials said the survey of these 31 schools has already been completed and work on preparing the PC-I will begin soon to launch a separate project next year.

Recently, the NA standing committee was informed that the schools visited by its members were not among the 167 schools covered by the project. The committee was assured by the education ministry that, through a separate project, facilities will be provided to the schools visited by the committee members and the remaining schools.

“For proper overhauling and renovation work, a separate project is required, and we will try to launch it in the next fiscal year. Meanwhile, through our own repair and maintenance budget, we carry out necessary work wherever required, as we did in Bobri and Humak schools,” said an education ministry officer.

Published in Dawn, November 17th, 2025