Education Policy 2009

Those who wished to see Pakistan as an educated nation were thrilled when in 1959 Commission on National Education appointed by the Ayub government submitted a scholarly document known as Sharif Report. Hopes were kindled that its implementation will lift the nation from 127th position on the list of the most illiterate countries of the world to the top ten or twenty. But none in the government had time to cast a second look on the monumental effort. Frustration overtook the hopes and layers of dust settled on the document with the passage of time. Another equally prestigious document known as Noor Khan Report submitted in 1964 by The Commission on Students Problems and Welfare, promised that the country will soon achieve universal education and hit higher targets of scientific education to come up to the level of advanced countries of the world. It was also destined to meet the same fate. Then came the New Education Policy during the decade of nineties which targeted to educate the whole nation by 2015. The nation stands almost at the threshold of the promised year but finds itself much more illiterate than ever. The present government too has kept up the tradition and announced its Education Policy 2009.

With some enthusiasm the new policy can bear fruit to compensate for the past neglects. According to this policy spending on education will be increased. It aims at free primary education by 2015, free matriculation education by 2025, increase in adult literacy to 86% by 2015, increase in higher education enrolment from 4.7% to 19% in 2015 and to 15% ii 2020. The figures, however, appear to be a wish list because no spade work seems to have been done which could give them a pragmatic look. The show apparently is a political posture and as such unrealistic. A previous government gave slogan of parha likha Punjab which did not mean much. This government has coined an attractive term of ‘Apna Ghar’ schools for the poor, which too appears to be a hollow political slogan.