Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Amir Haider Khan Hoti has said that more investment for promotion of education could guarantee bright future of the country and for this purpose the KP government has decided to allocate 4 percent of GDP in 2012-13 budget for education sector.
He claimed that for the first time in history of the province, the KP government had decided to allocate 4% of provincial GDP to education sector in the upcoming financial year budget. He was addressing a gathering after inaugurating new academic block and hostel building at UET Mardan campus on Monday.
The budget of higher education was proposed to be Rs 5 billion for the next financial year compare to ongoing financial year that stood at Rs 3 billion, he said. Efforts were underway for upgrading campus of University of Engineering and Technology in Mardan to a full fledge university, said the chief minister said, adding that illiteracy, poverty, injustice and unemployment besides specific mindset of militants were the elements that gave birth to current situation in the province and extremists had tried to accomplish their evil design by taking advantage of this space.
The government was striving to eradicate poverty, unemployment, illiteracy and injustice he said adding "Stori Da Pakhtunkhwa" scheme had been initiated for intelligent students along with establishment of seven universities, 50 colleges and a large number of new schools.
The quality of education and environment in private schools and colleges were not available in the government schools and colleges and that was the reason why the government institutes couldn't compete with private institutes, he said. The government had initiated Stori Da Pakhtunkhwa programme for encouragement of students of the government institution and scholarships worth Rs 10,000 and Rs 15,000 had been offered to top ten position holders in SSC and HSSC under entire board of the province.
He said students of the government colleges were not included in this programme launched in 2011 however, this year they had been included and it would cost Rs 33.9 million for two years on account of scholarship amounting to Rs 15, 000 to students of government colleges.
The provincial government would bear education expanses of the students enrolled to private institutes in areas that lack government middle and high schools under Rokhana Pakhtunkhwa programme, he added. Under the scheme, 100 quality private schools were selected in 25 districts of the province in the first phase while 300 more schools would be selected in next phase, Hoti said.
The establishment of Abdul Wali Khan Univeristy Mardan and Bacha Khan Medical College were the remarkable achievements of the government which were upfront in spreading light of higher education, he maintained and added that sub-campuses of Abul Wali Khan University had been established in Nowshera, Swabi, Bunir, upper Dir, Charsadda and Chitral.
Necessary legislation would be done for setting up Bacha Khan University in Charsadda. He said that resources would be utilised for upgrading UET campus in Mardan to a full fledge university and land would be arranged in Bacha Khan Greater education complex for Engineering University and legislation would be made in this connection, he said.
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