Labour of love brings laurels to 19th century girls school
0
HYDERABAD: Headmistress Hira Rafiq is beaming as she welcomes Sindh Education Minister Syed Sardar Ali Shah to the Government Girls Lower Secondary School in Latifabad.
She has every reason to be proud, as the day marks the culmination of her and her team’s efforts to restore and upgrade the school, which used to serve as a literal garbage dump just over a decade ago.
“I don’t want to recall the conditions that we endured when I joined the school in 2014”, said Ambreen, one of the teachers at the school.
“The space just outside the main entrance served as a dumping ground for garbage by people living in the neighbourhood,” she told Dawn on Monday.
Used as the neighbourhood dump a decade ago, the Latifabad school has now earned international recognition
Located in Tando Mir Ghulam Hussain, one of the oldest localities in Latifabad dating back to the Talpur dynasty, the school traces its origins to 1876.
Ms Rafiq’s efforts have now borne fruit, as the school has now been upgraded to a high school for girls.
“The building housed two schools, a co-education primary school working in the morning shift and a lower secondary for girls in the evening shift, but now it works as a morning shift lower secondary school for girls, while boys only study till the fifth grade,” she said.
The school’s meteoric improvement has also been noticed at the international level. According to Ms Rafiq, the humble institute has been selected among top ten schools of the world by UK based global platform, T4 Education World’s Best School Prizes 2026.
“The final result will be announced in October,” she said.
According to Ambreen, the teacher, the headmistress’ efforts to transform the school and then enable it to compete at different contests – including one organized by the British Council – has raised its profile considerably.
Ms Rafiq credits her teaching and non-teaching staff for securing a place on the T4 Education list.
“Enrolment was just 160 in 2017. Now we have 350 students,” she said, adding that her staff worked to engage the community where early marriages and child labour were prevalent.
The T4 list has shortlisted the school in the Community Collaboration category. On its website, it states: “As only accessible public school in the community, shift in learning has had a tangible impact. Within a year, enrolment increased by 90pc, and attendance by 80pc. Literacy and numeracy levels have shown measurable improvement, with more than 75pc of students showing grade-level improvement in numeracy and literacy”.
“Girls who once struggled to attend regularly are now actively participating in class, speaking confidently, and engaging with learning, and parents who were initially reluctant are now increasingly supportive, with over 80% prioritising education over child labour,” the citation noted.
This is not the only accolade the school has won. The institute claimed the Steam (Science, Technology, Arts and Mathematics) Pakistan award for Sindh in 2024, and at the regional level in 2025, according to Steam focal person Uzma Yusuf. Steam Pakistan is an initiative of Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training that aims to advance secondary school-aged girls’ access to education in Pakistan.
“We are the first government school in Sindh to have won this award in 2024,” she said.
Despite coming a very long way, Ms Rafiq says the school’s story is not yet at an end. Her school needs additional space for classrooms that requires the education ministry’s intervention.
“Still, we hold one or two classes in the corridor for want of space”, she said. “At least 30 children of third grade attend their class in the corridor in extreme heat,” she said.
Sardar Shah, who is the provincial education minister as well as a poet, was also grinning from ear to ear as he interacted with the school’s staff and students on Monday.
“Up-gradation of the school from lower secondary to girls high school is already notified,” he said, and asked an education works official to submit a report on whether the number of floors can be increased to create more space for students.
Hyderabad Mayor Kashif Ali Shoro, who accompanied the minister, also committed to support the school’s journey. “Your school’s distinction shows that one always doesn’t need cozy rooms to perform, but determination,” he said, while eulogizing Ms Rafiq’s efforts.
Published in Dawn, July 7th, 2026
