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The state of education across the country, particularly Sindh, has been rather dismal. There has been no improvement in educational standards despite various programmes by the provincial government and donors agencies due to widespread corruption and misuse of funds.
A report by Transparency International revealed that Sindh government purchased desks for public schools at 320% rate higher than the market, causing a loss of billions to the national exchequer. These dual-desks were purchased at Rs29,000 even though there were available in the market for Rs5,700 each. The lack of transparency subsequently caused a loss of Rs3 billion to the state coffers.
The Sindh government has not given any plausible explanation for the misappropriation, saying the price of wood has increased and it was not procured from a low-cost market. Former Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani has instead blamed the chief minister, stating that the furniture was purchased during his tenure. The matter has also been raised in the Sindh Assembly and given an opportunity to opposition parties to criticize the Sindh government for enjoying lavish lives from corruption.
A survey conducted last year showed that primary students in Sindh are far behind in learning as compared to students of the same age group in other provinces. It revealed that only 31% students can solve two-digit mathematics questions, 44% can read a story in their first language, and only 27% can read a sentence in English. There are around 6.4 million out-of-school children, of whom 53% are girls, while at least 10 percent have never been enrolled in school.
Another report recently stated that Sindh’s education system and governance system is an entangled political system in which the child’s future is being compromised. The officials of the Sindh Education and Literacy Department, who purchased the expensive furniture, are not serious about achieving results. The state of education, from primary to higher secondary levels, presents a sorry picture due to their negligence.
The purchase of expensive furniture is just the tip of the iceberg of corruption in the education sector. It is imperative that corrective action should be taken for gross irregularities. These unscrupulous elements cannot place the future of our children at stake and impede the nation’s development.
