PESHAWAR, May 15: NWFP Minister for Education Maulana Fazle Ali Haqqani has said that the number of school-going children has increased in the province owing to the MMA government’s education sector reforms.

He said the reforms included distribution of free books, free education up to matriculation and appointment of 45,000 teachers. He, however, said the province still needed Rs90 billion to achieve the 100 per cent literacy rate target by 2015.

The minister was addressing the inaugural ceremony of distribution of free books among 3.5 million students here on Tuesday.

Free books worth Rs400 million are being despatched to 24 districts for onward distribution to schools in the province.

He urged the federal government to enhance the education budget from the existing 2.2 per cent to four per cent of GDP.—PPI