Page 21 - Pakistan Link - October 19, 2018

COMMENTARY OCTOBER 19, 2018 – PAKISTAN LINK – P21
Rising Education in Pakistan the goalposts were always moving.
n By Nayyer Ali MD

It was hard to build an adequate
ince the country was found- education system as the number
ed, illiteracy and limited ac- of children would rise sharply
Scess to education has been ever year. But in the last 15 years
a hallmark of Pakistani society, or so, falling fertility rates means
and has contrib- that process has nearly halted.
uted massively The number of babies in Pakistan
to its slow pace has stopped growing for the most
of development. part, which means that the educa-
The dramatic tion system is no longer chasing
success of East a moving target. With proper in-
Asian Tigers vestment, and with a government
like Taiwan and that does not treat education as a
South Korea and dumping ground for patronage
Singapore was built on a founda- jobs, Pakistan can create a univer-
tion of universal primary educa- sal system learning that gives its
tion that began in the 1950’s and children the tools they will need to
1960’s. Pakistan, on the other succeed.
hand, is among the worst per-
formers in South and East Asia, UYGHUR FROM P8
though not quite as bad as Af- scholars should visit Xinjiang to
rica. This poor performance has help.
led to a climate of defeatism and CPEC is a $62 billion invest-
despair when it comes to Paki- ment by China. It is a game-chang-
stan’s education system, and this er for Pakistan, economically, no
is in fact unwarranted. Pakistan doubt. Yet, why is President Xi
has made huge strides in educa- Jinping dealing with a country that
tion at all levels, and its failure to is 90% mentally ill, being that he
achieve 100% literacy should not thinks that Islam is a mental ill-
obscure the massive expansion of ness and the majority in Pakistan
education that has occurred and nied an education. Partly this is be wonderful it that performance the profound underinvestment is infected by an “ideological virus
is continuing. because if only one school is being could be matched nationwide. in education that has hampered called Islam”? We should not forget
For perspective, West Paki- built in a location, it tends to serve While these enrollment num- Pakistan since its birth. Under that China voted against Pakistan
stan in 1947 had about 35 mil- boys. But more importantly is the bers are encouraging at the pri- Musharraf, education was expand- in FATF, the Financial Action Task
lion people, but less than a million cultural prejudice against the value mary level, quality of education ed substantially, and education Force.
children were in school. Primary of educating girls. This is slowly also matters. The habit of both spending reached 2.7% of GDP in Canceling the Dutch cartoon
school enrollment rate was only eroding, and in the cities certainly the PPP and PML-N to use teach- 2008, but then declined to 2.1% contest was important, and kudos
20%, with 770,000 students, of most young men who are literate ing jobs as a source of patronage under the PPP. PML-N govern- to Religious Affairs Minister Qadri
which only 110,000 were girls. would like a wife who is also edu- led to widespread ghost schools or ment has raised it back to 2.7%, but for protesting to China. Seems Paki-
There were 200,000 secondary cated. And educated mothers tend teachers with little or no interest or this is just making up lost ground. stan is trying to be the voice of the
school students, and only 20,000 to make sure their daughters go to capacity to teach. This problem is Pakistan should be spending 4% of Muslim world. These efforts are a
were female, and a grand total of school. This bias is being slowly being addressed in two ways. First, GDP on education, which it could good start but have not continued
17,000 students were attending any broken down, but it needs to be if families can afford it, they tend do if it had the political will. The with the war in Yemen. More on
sort of university. fully obliterated. Many NGO’s to send their children to private nation is dramatically undertaxed, that travesty another day.
By 1997 primary school en- provide education in more conser- schools where they can ensure the and the money is there if the gov- (Dr Mahjabeen Islam is a
rollment had reached only 65% of vative rural areas to girls, and they teacher is actually showing up and ernment chooses to mobilize the writer and an addiction and fam-
students, but that was in the con- are doing some great work. doing something. Second, in Pun- resources. ily medicine physician practicing in
text of a quadrupling of the popu- So how close is Pakistan to jab in particular, the government While the issue of out-of- Ohio. - mahjabeen.islam@gmail.
lation and a massive increase in the universal primary school enroll- school children is still a giant prob- com)
number of children. The number ment? Closer than you think. Pakistan has made lem, it is getting better. From 2012
of school-age children rose from School enrollment numbers are to 2016, in the 5-9 age group the IMRAN FROM P4
under 4 million in 1947 to 20 mil- provided using two different met- huge strides in number of out-of-school boys has belong, may be the easier part of
lion in1997. In 1997 there were rics, “Net Enrollment Ratio, or dropped from 3 million to 2 mil- the equation. Selling his package of
15.5 million children in primary NER”, and “Gross Enrollment Ra- education at all lion, and for girls from 4 million more hardship and suffering as the
school, 6.5 million were girls, and tio or GER”. If primary school age levels, and its failure to 3 million. In the 10-12-year age price for eventual prosperity will be
at the university level the numbers is defined as ages of 5-9 years, then group, the drop has been smaller, a tougher nut to crack. It will take
were now about 1 million students, NER is what percent of children to achieve 100% from 3.2 to 3 million for boys, and all the savvy and guile on his part
with 350,000 girls. in that age group are enrolled in from 3.5 to 3.2 million for girls. to convince the people that corrup-
In 2016, the last year for which school. But there are many chil- literacy should At age 13-16, the number for boys tion has gone down to the bones of
there is data as no PSLM survey dren, especially in Pakistan, who not obscure the has fallen from 7 to 5.5 million Pakistan. The cancer has spread to
was conducted in 2018 due to the attend primary school at a delayed and for girls from 7 to 5.7 million. all parts of the body and it will take
census, there were almost 19 mil- age. They may start at age 8 and massive expansion GER ratio at the secondary school nothing less than massive surgery to
lion children in primary schools, attend to age 13. If we count the level meanwhile has risen from 20 root it out. This will be taking a huge
over 8 million were girls. Almost total number of students actually of education that to 34%, still a long way to 100%. gamble on Imran’s popularity.
80 times as many girls were at- in primary school and divide by has occurred and is In the 25-34-year age group, 15% It will be a hard sell, to say the
tending school as in 1947. At the the number of students in the 5-9 now have some sort of tertiary or very least. The people’s reaction to
secondary school level there were age group, we get the GER. From continuing university degree. the bitter pill rammed down their
6.5 million students, of which 3 2012 to 2016, Pakistan’s NER rose Another impediment to edu- throat will decide if Imran’s charm
million were girls. University en- from 68 to 77%, but its GER rose cation is the lack of drinking wa- remains undiminished or has run
rollment is now over 3 million stu- from 86 to 97%. This means that in the last few years has been turn- ter, toilet facilities, and electric- out of its magic. Testing times ahead
dents, with several hundred thou- just about all Pakistan children ing over primary schools to NGO’s ity in schools. While this is not a for both the people of Pakistan and
sand more in vocational schools. are at some point attending pri- to operate, which leads to better problem at the high school level, it their messiah.
Pakistan’s literacy rate has mary school, but not necessarily performance. Currently 37% of remains a problem in some of the - K_K_ghori@hotmail.com
been rising. Adult literacy as of between the ages of 5-9. NER in students attend private schools and provinces at the primary school (The writer is a former ambas-
2015 was 60%, with youth litera- 2016 was 83% for boys and 71% this number is rising. level. Punjab has done a great job sador and career diplomat)
cy (age 15-24) up to 72%. These for girls, while GER was 105% for Despite the massive increase in getting electricity in 90% of pri-
rates have probably ticked up a males and 90% for females. in education over the last 70 years, mary schools, and water in 100%, US Must Stay in Afghanistan
few points in the last three years, Punjab and KP are doing there is still a crushing problem of but overall the numbers are about Until Peace Is Achieved
but we will need another PSLM particularly well. Punjab had an children not in school. If we take 60% for electricity and 70% for wa-
survey to verify that. Male youth NER of 88% for boys and 83% for as baseline that all children should ter. These basic infrastructure bar- London: Inter-Services Public Re-
literacy has reached 80%. The rise girls, while GER was over 100% be in school from age 5 to 16, and riers need to be overcome. lations (ISPR) Director General
of smart phones and text messag- for both. KP had an NER of 95% receive 12 years of education, then While Pakistan’s education Major General Asif Ghafoor Tues-
ing has made the value of literacy for boys and 74% for girls, with an in 2015 there were 22.6 million system is still woefully inadequate day said Pakistan wants US forces to
much more immediate, and hope- amazing GER of 130% for boys Pakistani children out of school. to meet the needs of its 50 million stay in Afghanistan until complete
fully this will increase the desire (lots of illiterate teenagers are at- At age 5-9, 23% of children are still school-age children, it has made peace is achieved in the war-torn
of children to educate themselves tending primary school) and 95% not in school (5 million out and 17 huge progress since its miniscule country.
when given the opportunity. for girls. Sindh has a GER of 90% million in school). At age 10-12, beginnings 70 years ago. A well- “Peace in Afghanistan is im-
There is still a gender disparity for boys but still an abysmally low there are 6 million in school and 6 educated workforce is critical to perative for lasting peace in Paki-
in education which extends from 70% for girls, which reflects rural million out, and at age 13-16 there making rapid economic growth stan and the whole region,” the ISPR
primary school all the way to uni- Sindh’s cultural bias against female are only 5 million in school and 11 possible, the key ingredient in cre- chief, who arrived in United King-
versity. At each level boys make up education, paradoxically more in- million out. In the youngest age ating a modern industrial econ- dom last week as part of a military
about 56% of the students, which tense than what is seen in KP. The group, 14% of children in Punjab omy and an affluent society. The delegation headed by Chief of Army
means that there is a significant statistics for Islamabad look like and 15% in KP are out of school. rapid population growth Pakistan Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa,
fraction of girls who are being de- a First World country, it would This lack of schooling reflects experienced for decades meant US, P28
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