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ISLAMABAD, Jan 11: The education ministry intends to impart education about HIV/AIDS by providing information and textbooks on preventive measures against the deadly disease.
This was stated by federal education minister Zobaida Jalal during her meeting with Dr Nafis Sadiq, advisor to the UN secretary-general on HIV/AIDS.
The minister said her ministry, in collaboration with Unesco, had already adapted a training manual on preventive education against the deadly disease. The manual has been provided to all the teachers training institute of the country.
The education ministry is also working on a strategy to adapt and develop advocacy material for policy makers, curriculum developers and textbooks writers about HIV/AIDS, the minister said, adding that the ministry also intended to organize some orientation/sensitization seminars on the issue.
She called for making concerted efforts to check the spread of the disease due to high risk factors in Pakistan, and said the students of schools and colleges had already been involved in launching an effective awareness campaign.
The orientation lectures in the educational institutions were introduced, in which the experts warned the students about the disease, she recalled.
She said the concept of HIV/AIDS and its prevention had been included in the Population Education Curriculum, evolved by her ministry. The theme of preventive education against the disease has also been included in programmes like “population and development, education for youths”.
The minister said the UNFPA was also providing a financial assistance for this project. Curriculum identification and development of the training material was planned for the project activities.
She told Dr Nafis that her ministry was interested in participating in the National Aid Programme being implemented by the health ministry and its international partners.
Ms Jalal also gave a briefing on the activities already initiated by the education ministry, which included increasing understanding about youth vulnerabilities. She also stressed the need to create a supportive environment for the implementation of an effective risk reduction programme for youth.
Dr Nafis Sadiq, speaking on the occasion, said the menace of HIV/AIDS was spreading at a fast pace in the world. She said it was imperative to apprise young generation about the deadly effects of the virus to bring careful attitudinal changes in them. They (youths) should be given the necessary information, so as to take responsible and informed decisions in life, she said.
An attitudinal change could be brought through provision of information and imparting training to teachers, through in- service and pre-service infrastructure.
Our Reporter Adds: The education minister has accepted a demand made by the education minister of the state of Eritrea, Osman Saleh, to send Pakistani instructors to teach science disciplines to students of his country.
She was giving a briefing to a delegation from Eritrea, lead by foreign minister Ali Saeed Abdullah and education minister Osman Saleh, at her office on Saturday. She said the relationship between Eritrea and Pakistan had always been very warm and cordial.
The minister said she would extend every possible help to Eritrea in the field of education. Both the ministers discussed matters of mutual interests and assured each other of the maximum help and support in education sector.
Ms Jalal told the delegation that under the new democratic government, education would enjoy a priority status and her ministry would be able to achieve the desired targets.
Commenting on the Education Sector Reforms, she said, basically, it was the continuation of good policies in the education sector. She said she wanted to provide quality education to all citizens to integrate Pakistan into the global framework of human-centred development. She said the policy of her ministry was to enhance educational opportunities, specially for girls, in the rural areas, improve service delivery, expand technical and vocational education, and to promote public-private sector partnership.
She told the delegation about the on-going projects and said the government was committed to making education more accessible for every citizen. She maintained that after the devolution of power in the country, the education sector was greatly benefited.
