KARACHI: Announcing that the Sindh Textbook Board (STBB) has achieved its publication target by preparing 52 million textbook sets for the academic year 2026-27, Education Minister Syed Sardar Shah has said every student will have new textbooks on the first day of the new academic year i.e. April 1.

He said this while speaking at a programme held to distribute textbooks among students at the Government Girls Lower Secondary School, Neelam Colony, Clifton, on Thursday.

School Education Secretary Zahid Ali Abbasi, Special Secretary Education Abdul Hanan Sheikh, STBB Chairman Parvez Ahmed Baloch, Sindh Education Foundation Managing Director Ghanwar Laghari, education officers, teachers and a large number of students were also present.

For the academic year 2026-27, the STBB has completed the publication of textbooks from Early Childhood Education (ECE) classes up to Grade 10 under the title of ‘Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Textbook Series’, with a total of 195 titles printed up to grade 10. The textbooks have been published in Sindhi, Urdu and English.

Education minister promises every student will have new books on first day of academic year

The textbooks will be distributed among 5.2m students of 41,158 schools across Sindh.

Speaking on the occasion, the minister emphasised that the Constitution guarantees free education; therefore, providing free textbooks to children is also the government’s responsibility.

He informed that the formal distribution of textbooks will be completed by April 1, while District Education Officers (DEOs) have been directed to ensure timely delivery of books to schools.

He added that textbooks will be further improved in consultation with teachers and education experts to reduce the academic burden on children and to promote quality education.

Mr Shah commended the performance of the STBB, stating that the institution had demonstrated responsibility and commitment.

He noted that despite an increase in paper taxes and other challenges, the board successfully completed the publication process through effective planning, ensuring timely availability of textbooks for students.

He further stated that work on textbook development is ongoing and that curriculum changes will be introduced from the next academic year to align education with modern requirements.

“The revised curriculum will focus on research, scientific thinking, and creativity, while incorporating modern trends in science, technology, mathematics, languages and social sciences,” he said, adding that special emphasis will also be placed on religious tolerance, mutual respect, gender studies and environmental protection.

The minister recalled that during the previous federal government, emphasis was placed on the implementation of a Single National Curriculum, which Sindh opposed clearly and unequivocally. “Today, the Sindh’s stance is being validated, as other provinces are now also discussing the inclusion of mother tongues as subjects in schools, an approach Sindh adopted long ago.” being validated, as other provinces are now also discussing the inclusion of mother tongues as subjects in schools, an approach Sindh adopted long ago.”

On the occasion, Mr Abbasi stated that Unesco has declared Sindh’s curriculum as “most inclusive”.

He added that efforts are under way to develop the curriculum according to a “learning-to-earning” mechanism so that students can be equipped with market-relevant skills.

The STBB chairman said that online availability of textbooks is also being ensured. He added that the STBB has successfully achieved all its targets over the past two years and will continue with this performance in the future.

Later, the education minister distributed textbooks among the students of the school.

Published in Dawn, February 20th, 2026