Speakers at
a policy forum on ‘Education Financing in Pakistan: Challenges and way forward’
demanded substantial increase in budget allocation for education from current
meager figure of 2% to 6% of the fiscal budget.
The forum was held on Wednesday by Actionaid Pakistan in collaboration with
Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) to mark 14th Sustainable
Development Conference (SDC). Among the participants included parliamentarians,
civil bureaucracy, educational experts, academicians and civil society
activists.
Jemal Ahmed, Country Director ActionAid Pakistan said that education financing
was a key for social development. He stressed for need to ensure accessibility,
availability, affordability and acceptability of education for all. Education
can play an important role in bringing real change in the lives of poor people
especially the most marginalized section of the society because it is a basic
tool of social and individual empowerment, he added.
Sardar Husain Babak, Minister for Education, KP said there was need for
contextualising the issue. Security is the major issue of KP that affects any
development programme being undertaken by the government, he said, adding
extremists were causing severe damage to education infrastructure.
Tariq Qamar Baloch, Additional Secretary Colleges and Higher and Technical
Education Balochistan said that the government had achieved a landmark success
by enhancing education budget of Balochistan to 11% of the fiscal budget.
However, he acknowledged that problems for promotion of quality education were
innumerable ranging from capacity issues, security and stability crisis,
geographical vastness (spread) and restrained accessibility for all.
Uzma Tahir, Manager Policy, Advocacy and Research, ActionAid Pakistan that
there was need to address the issues of mystery of macroeconomics, demystifying
the national education budget, tax justice issues and debt servicing and
defense budget.
Mukhtar Ahmed, Chief of Party FAFEN stressed for the need to comply with
article 25A of the constitution which binds the state to provide free and
compulsory education to all children of 5 to 16 years of age.
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