KOHAT, Nov 1: The education authorities and tribal elders of Orakzai agency have reached an agreement on allowing the United Nations International Children Emergency Fund (Unicef) to repair 20 local schools damaged in clashes between security forces and militants.

The two sides met here on Sunday with education officers, elders of lower and central Orakzai agency, representatives of Unicef and officials of National Research and Development Foundation (NRDF) in attendance.

The tribal elders said they would allow enrollment of children of five years in schools in the areas where the government’s writ had been enforced.

For a long time, militants and a majority of Orakzai agency population opposed the activities of local and international NGOs working on education in the area. And NGOs had to pull out of the area and restrict their activities to Hangu district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after their workers were attacked in 2006.

Clashes are reportedly under way in upper Orakzai agency areas of Mamozai, Dabori and Khadizai.Assistant agency officer of Orakzai Abdul Khalid, NRDF coordinator for Orakzai Shehzad Khan, Mufti Mohammad Bahadar Haqqani and Mohammad Haroon also attended the meeting.

Shehzad Khan told the meeting that 1,900 boys and girls had so far been re-enrolled in various schools in the agency.

He said some schools had refused to give admission to children on the pretext that the academic year was about to close, adding that NRDF was in contact with elders of other areas for cooperation and help of elders for admission to their children in schools.