Teachers' Role Acknowledged For Society' Betterment

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 05th Oct, 2016 ) : Speakers at a conference held here Wednesday paid tributes to the teachers for their role in development of societies through disseminating knowledge and wisdom.

The conference was arranged by National Commission for Human Development (NCHD) in collaboration with Institute of Policy Studies (IPS). Addressing on the occasion, Chairperson NCHD and former Senator Razina Alam Khan said a literate environment, not only improves socio economic indicators in a society but also positively influences systems of the governance.

"Everything we create today is based on the knowledge that we obtain throughout our life by innovative education, technology and technology based products", she added. "When the people of a nation are educated, they would definitely carve ways to become self sufficient.

An economically independent society is the stepping stone to combined productivity that leads to the economic growth of the nation, on the whole", Razina Alam said. Chairperson expressed the hope that by enhancement of enrollment in the schools, the number of illiterates in the country, most of them females, would be reduced.

Keeping in mind the low literacy rate of women in Pakistan, NCHD devised `Adult Literacy Program' that focuses on women especially the mothers, she said. The female teachers of NCHD are great asset, she informed.

She deplored that the situation becomes worse with the staggering figure that out of 26 million children who are enrolled, only 33% reach the matriculation level. NCHD has launched a country wide campaign for drop-outs and 82,166 children have been enrolled by now in our feeder schools since April 2016, she informed.

While discussing the grim educational statistics in Pakistan, chairperson NCHD said, the Primary net enrollment is 72%, out of which 33% are dropouts. Accessibility is one of the main reasons of low enrollment, in order to address this issue, NCHD had established 5,949 Community Feeder Schools in underprivileged and remote areas all over Pakistan.

6,581 Feeder teachers are working in these schools with 310,146 learners acquiring primary education. She stressed the need of quality education to meet the challenge of dropouts. NCHD has adopted Sustainable Development Goals, targets and indicators in the realm of literacy, non formal education, skill development and empowerment of women, she observed.

While discussing about NCHD education programs and initiatives she informed, NCHD had launched `Madrassa school Project' to bring seminaries in mainstream and to provide formal education to the madrassa students in ICT, FATA, GB and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

Strategy for establishment of 2000 Adult Literacy Centers and recommendation of the advisory council on framing National Policy on Non-Formal Education and Adult Literacy and National Plan of Action for achieving 90% literacy rate was being extended under the leadership of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, she informed..

She further said, the launch of "Each One Teach One" campaign in Islamabad is also a very significant step by NCHD. If the educated youth voluntarily come forward to contribute to this noble cause, an enormous social change could be brought in the situation of literacy and education of the country, she added.

The university students can play vital role in this project to make Islamabad 100% literate, she further added. Briefly highlighting about NCHD projects she said, "we had launched `Literacy for Jail Project' to educate prisoners in the jails under a massive programme alongwith the skill development to make the prisoners useful citizens after their release from jails".

Currently eight Adult Literacy Centers are functional in Jails of Kasur and Toba Tek Singh, whereas others are in the establishment process. However we plan to establish such centers in all 99 jails of the country, she said.

NCHD has launched `Non-formal Education project', in collaboration with Japan International Cooperation Association (JICA) in Islamabad Capital Territory in September, she informed. In this project, 50 non-formal schools will be established for the age group of 8 to 14 years, she added.

The best teachers awards were given to Tasmia Shahzadi, Moti, Ghulam Hussain, Shahana, Rakhshanda Begum, Ishrat Bibi and Farid Ullah. Director General NCHD, Director General IPS, Khalid Rehman spoke to the audience through a motivation session on the topic 'Teacher as a Leader'.

DG NCHD also addressed the participants including teachers from different schools, colleges and universities and also madrassas.