Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Ali Amin Gandapur, on Tuesday vowed to allocate more funds to the education sector in the upcoming provincial budget. adding that education will be a top priority in the upcoming provincial budget, with increased resource allocation to address critical challenges in the sector, state-run Radio Pakistan reported.
The chief minister’s renewed focus comes in the wake of a textbook shortage that has disrupted classroom learning across the province, rising student dropout rates, and Pakistan’s poor standing in the District Education Performance Index Report 2020–23.
Chairing a meeting in Peshawar, Gandapur directed officials to implement measures aimed at improving the education system. These include enhancing teacher training, ensuring 100% merit-based recruitment, and establishing schools in rented buildings in underserved areas.
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According to the report, the government plans to launch a series of comprehensive initiatives to boost student enrolment. Schemes supporting these efforts will be included in the upcoming provincial budget.
Expressing concern over the high number of out-of-school children in several districts, the chief minister described the situation as “alarming” and emphasised the need to declare an education emergency to address the issue and raise enrolment rates.
Gandapur also stressed the importance of strengthening monitoring systems and filling critical gaps in infrastructure, including laboratories, examination halls, and other basic facilities in existing schools.
For nearly two decades, students in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa received free textbooks at the start of each academic year in April. However, two years ago, due to escalating costs exceeding Rs10 billion, the provincial government reduced textbook distribution by half, directing school administrations to collect used books from students promoted to higher grades.
This year, a more complex crisis has emerged. While the provincial textbook board claims to have printed all the books requested by the education department, students and teachers across the province continue to report widespread shortages.
An official report released in August last year placed Pakistan’s education system in the “low performance” category, highlighting major gaps and urging reforms to improve educational outcomes nationwide.
