Pakistan is transitioning from an agriculture economy to industrial economy. The country spends most of its budget on national security and infrastructure, a very low proportion of budget is allocated for social services such as education and health.
With the increasing poverty in the world, the ratio of Out of School children is increasing day by day. According to the UNESCO, almost 264 million children do not go to the school. Globally, 1 in 5 adolescents is not in school compared to almost 1 in 10 primary school-age children. This show that as the child grows the ratio of his/her drop out is increasing.
Pakistan is one of the topmost countries where more than 22.84 million children are out of school and this number is increasing day by day. This is the very alarming situation for the underdeveloped country, government and authorities should take serious steps on the emergency basis to counter the situation.
Article 25-A of the constitution of Pakistan provides every child the right of Education and it is a state responsibility to provide free and compulsory education to the children of the age 5 to 16. Despite the constitutional right, many children are deprived of their basic right to get a free education.
There are certain socio-cultural barriers due to which most of the children are out of school. Factors include poverty, lack of awareness of the importance of education in parents, low maternal literacy level, parents attitude toward gender, parents prefer girls to take part in household responsibilities rather than education.
The topmost factor is poverty. 25 percent people of Pakistan are living below the poverty line and are living from hand to mouth. Because of expensive private education and lack of government schools, most parents prefer their children to learn some skills rather than formal education. To make both ends meet parents are forced to send their children for hard labor that lead to another tragic situation of child labor. According to a survey conducted by the Federal Bureau of Statistics, out of the estimated 40 million children in Pakistan, approximately 19 million are working as child laborers. This not only affects their physical health but also damage their mental health.
Another factor is the parent’s perception that formal education in schools won’t help their children in the future so parents prefer their children to learn some skills. The negative perception of the parents regarding education and schooling prevent children to go to schools for formal education. With less parental support in school work and low level of motivation force a child to lose interest in school. Parents support is crucial for a child to keep interest in education. Their support can be the lifeline for the child, to peruse their dreams and set goals for their life.
A child wants to care and expects to be treated kindly. The unprofessional attitude of teachers at schools creates fears in children and child loses interest in schools and becomes unwilling to go to school. A teacher is supposed to treat children politely and motivate them and make them feel at home where they feel safe, comfortable. Unfortunately, the unprofessional behavior of our teachers at primary schools leads to many drops out of children at the primary level because children fear teachers.
Despite all barriers with help of international communities and NGO’s along with education ministry of Pakistan are taking local communities on board to coup with the dire situation of education in Pakistan. Many projects are launched for awareness among parents regarding the importance of education and convincing them to send their children to schools to get the education. Pakistani education ministry is encouraging incentives taken by NGOs to enroll children in schools and provide quality education with the goal that one day every child in our country will be enriched with jewels of education.
Writter:Zain Ul Abadin
A journalism Student and Social Activist
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