“Have our leaders done enough for education?”

Regional government has lofty goals for education, writes Naseema Perveen, 22, a Commonwealth Correspondent from Islamabad in Pakistan, but implementation is crucial for students and for society.

Surfing the web I found some pictures that caught my attention – kids sitting on the ground under the open sky.

The caption to this newspaper photo revealed that it was taken in an area in Skardu, Gilgit-Baltistan. I was astonished that my leaders, who talk about real pace and scale of development across the area, do not even take notice of such crucial issues. On the other hand they talk about the mega projects across the area. 

One more interesting thing I found is that the government has clearly mentioned in its mission statement “to bring all children, boys and girls inside in the school by providing quality education through access at all level” (Directorate of Education GB website). Although I don’t mind the grammatical mistakes in this statement, basically their aim is to provide education at all levels.  I hope the aim is to provide standard education as well.  The most interesting thing is that at least they have mentioned the students being located in the school, not in the open air. I don’t see that implementation in the pictures I found.

I believe education to be the most fundamental of the pillars of economic prosperity, and something which has to be promoted in any case. According to a report published by Alif Ailaan, Gilgit-Baltistan is ranked as third among the provinces of the country in its educational index, and its educational score is 67. Although Gilgit-Baltistan is said to have a high literacy rate, it falls at the third position in the list of the all provinces. In order to meet the growing challenges of the global village the educational system it has to more efficient. It is worth mentioning by comparison that developed countries have an educational index above 80.

Education is the most expensive gift a state can give to the citizens because it does not only affect the individual but also a family, a community and in a broader sense a nation. A child out of school is an alarming signal for the hope of society, because with the passage of time that single person is a representative of the whole society.

I hope leaders understand, because a private institute cannot take responsibility for the provision of the public good. Up to a certain extent this is applicable, but private education is not accessible to all due to the lack of resources.  Economic prosperity can only be achieved through a better education system. Education creates opportunities. It increases skills and efficiency of people who can contribute towards the development of any nation.

I feel it is the immense responsibility of the government to take notice of education, and I hope that the government of Gilgit-Baltistan will allocate a significant portion of the budget to educational development this year. Otherwise our area would not be different than the other parts of the country with a high percentage of child labor, and insecurity of food at all levels.

I highly recommend the government to take notice and try its best to improve the quality of education by providing qualified faculty at all levels, because merely setting up schools without proper management is not going to work at all. 

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About me:

I am blogger, writer, and a social person; I am a responsible, trust-worthy and friendly person. My aim in writing is to address social issues, many of which remain unnoticed. 

Currently I am a student of Economics, aspiring to make my career in social development as a social worker. I have passion to work with people from all walks of life and believe social development is only possible through common effort and consultation.

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Opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the Commonwealth Youth Programme. Articles are published in a spirit of dialogue, respect and understanding. If you disagree, why not submit a response?

To learn more about becoming a Commonwealth Correspondent please visit: http://www.yourcommonwealth.org/submit-articles/commonwealthcorrespondents/

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