According to district education officials, although the government had planned to achieve 100 per cent participation rate of children of primary education age-group (5 to 9 years) by the year 2004, practically it is not possible as some of the districts and talukas did not have adequate infrastructural facilities, trained manpower and motivation in their population for the purpose.
While making presentation on the district plans pertaining to the education for all (EFA) programme at a one-day “capacity building” workshop under the aegis of the Sindh education department here on Wednesday, the district officials came up with the notion that at some of the districts, where primary school participation rate was considerably very poor, the EFA target will prove a daunting task, particularly when it was applied in the case of women population.
One of the speakers from the Badin district said that under his initial plan it would take at least ten years in the case of boys and 15 years for the girl students to fulfil the EFA target, especially the 100 per cent primary education participation rate.
Representatives from Badin, Dadu, Thatta, Sanghar, Mirpurkhas and Hyderabad maintained that unless 30 to 50 new primary schools were established in each district in the first year, existing schools were upgraded, input of fresh teaching and non-teaching staff was ensured, training of teachers was undertaken and community was motivated, it would be hard to realise the targets of 100 per cent primary education, 100 per cent adult literacy and early childhood education, as required under the national plan of action.
However, officials from the Sindh government pointed out that the situation could be changed if the authorities moved for proper utilization of existing primary schools, which could also lead to saving of resources. It was said that although the ideal teacher-student ratio was 1:22, it was not being observed at all places as most of the institutions were underutilized.
Moreover, under the Sindh education reforms, private schools were being given incentives to open schools in the rural areas as well, added one government official.
According to federal government officials, under the national plan of action, literacy rate is planned to increase from the existing 49 per cent to 86 per cent in the next 15 years. Primary school participation rate will be increased from the existing 66 per cent to 100 per cent by the last year of the plan (2000-15).
Deputy secretary, ministry of education, Pervez Iqbal, said that efforts should be made to prepare a detailed schedule of implementation of the national action plan at district and tehsil levels.
Additional education secretary Anwar Ahmed Zai said that officials should give a final shape to the initial plans they discussed at the workshop so that it could be incorporated in the implementation plan of the province.
He said the government was also taking steps regarding early childhood education and adult literacy.
The focal person of the EFA, Sindh unit, Ghizala Kazi, asked the district authorities to have more consultation on the subject with their district coordination officers and district officers education and finalize their action plan soon as the provincial committee on EFA would start visiting them from July 10 to finalise a comprehensive central plan by the end of July.