KARACHI: The Sindh Education Department has connected around 100,000 out-of-school children to the education system through various non-formal education (NFE) initiatives since the launch of the Non-Formal Education Programme in April 2025, which is aimed at providing educational opportunities to children who, for various reasons, were unable to access conventional schools.

This was shared by the provincial Minister for Education Syed Sardar Ali Shah as he addressed a ceremony held on Wednesday at the Scouts Auditorium in Karachi for the distribution of 1,000 digital tablets among non-formal education facilitators.

The event was organised by the Directorate of Literacy and Non-Formal Education, School Education Department, Sindh.

The ceremony was attended by Chiho Ohashi, chief adviser for Education and Literacy at the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Pakistan; Director Literacy and Non-Formal Education Abdul Jabbar Mari; representatives of various social organisations and community-based organisations; non-formal education facilitators; teachers; and students.

The education minister said that the non-formal education initiatives in Sindh were producing positive results. Connecting nearly 100,000 out-of-school children to education through 1,880 NFE centres across six districts was a significant achievement of the programme, he added.

He said that where children could not reach conventional schools, the School Education Department, with the support of local communities, was taking educational opportunities to them. Through non-formal education, particular attention was being given to bringing girls, children from disadvantaged communities and those facing difficulties in accessing schools into the education system.

The provincial minister said that although non-formal education was outside the conventional schooling system, it was being aligned with modern educational requirements. He said the distribution of 1,000 tablets was not merely the provision of digital devices but a step towards empowering 1,000 facilitators, strengthening 1,000 educational centres and creating better learning opportunities for thousands of children.

He said the digital tablets would help maintain direct communication with facilitators, monitor student attendance and other educational activities, and provide children studying at non-formal education centres in remote areas with access to teaching and learning support through digital screens.

Syed Sardar Ali Shah said the issue of out-of-school children was not limited to Sindh but was a challenge for the entire country. He said, however, that serious efforts were being made in Sindh to address the challenge.

Chiho Ohashi, chief adviser for Education and Literacy at JICA Pakistan, said the digital tablets would provide facilitators with better access to teaching and learning materials and help them deliver more effective and interactive educational activities for students. Facilitators would also be able to benefit from online training, professional development and self-learning opportunities.

On the occasion, Director NFE Abdul Jabbar Mari said the Non-Formal Education Management Information System would enable timely entry, monitoring and updating of information related to students and non-formal education centres. This would further improve system monitoring and the management of educational activities.

Published in Dawn, October 2nd, 2026