AGL 38.54 Increased By ▲ 0.97 (2.58%)
AIRLINK 129.50 Decreased By ▼ -3.00 (-2.26%)
BOP 5.61 Decreased By ▼ -0.03 (-0.53%)
CNERGY 3.86 Increased By ▲ 0.09 (2.39%)
DCL 8.73 Decreased By ▼ -0.14 (-1.58%)
DFML 41.76 Increased By ▲ 0.76 (1.85%)
DGKC 88.30 Decreased By ▼ -1.86 (-2.06%)
FCCL 35.00 Decreased By ▼ -0.08 (-0.23%)
FFBL 67.35 Increased By ▲ 0.85 (1.28%)
FFL 10.61 Increased By ▲ 0.46 (4.53%)
HUBC 108.76 Increased By ▲ 2.36 (2.22%)
HUMNL 14.66 Increased By ▲ 1.26 (9.4%)
KEL 4.75 Decreased By ▼ -0.11 (-2.26%)
KOSM 6.95 Increased By ▲ 0.10 (1.46%)
MLCF 41.65 Decreased By ▼ -0.15 (-0.36%)
NBP 59.60 Increased By ▲ 1.02 (1.74%)
OGDC 183.00 Increased By ▲ 1.75 (0.97%)
PAEL 26.25 Increased By ▲ 0.55 (2.14%)
PIBTL 5.97 Increased By ▲ 0.14 (2.4%)
PPL 146.70 Decreased By ▼ -1.70 (-1.15%)
PRL 23.61 Increased By ▲ 0.39 (1.68%)
PTC 16.56 Increased By ▲ 1.32 (8.66%)
SEARL 68.30 Decreased By ▼ -0.49 (-0.71%)
TELE 7.23 Decreased By ▼ -0.01 (-0.14%)
TOMCL 35.95 Decreased By ▼ -0.05 (-0.14%)
TPLP 7.85 Increased By ▲ 0.45 (6.08%)
TREET 14.20 Decreased By ▼ -0.04 (-0.28%)
TRG 50.45 Decreased By ▼ -0.40 (-0.79%)
UNITY 26.75 Increased By ▲ 0.35 (1.33%)
WTL 1.21 No Change ▼ 0.00 (0%)
BR100 9,809 Increased By 41.1 (0.42%)
BR30 29,711 Increased By 311.1 (1.06%)
KSE100 92,406 Increased By 468.1 (0.51%)
KSE30 28,874 Increased By 129.9 (0.45%)

PESHAWAR: The Elementary & Secondary Education Department (E&SED), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) have launched an education support programme for adolescent girl students in the newly merged districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The pilot project aims to provide income support to families of adolescent girls so that they are able to meet their food and nutrition needs during COVID-19 and continue their schooling, according to a official handout issued here on Friday.

Under this programme, nearly 21,000 girls between grade 6 and 10, enrolled in 288 government girls' high schools in all the seven Newly Merged Districts and six sub-divisions will be assisted. The project was launched by the Provincial Education Minister, Akbar Ayub Khan and WFP Pakistan Representative & Country Director, Chris Kaye, at the Committee Room of E&SED.

"We are initiating this pilot project with the support of World Food Programme, envisioning a large-scale provincial cash stipend programme where every enrolled child will be assisted with financial assistance," said the Provincial Minister. He also shared that it is the priority of the provincial government to ensure that all out-of-school children are encouraged to attend school as more than 1 million children of age 4-14 years are out of school in the Newly Merged Districts and 67 percent of the population is unable to read or write (with the figure rising to 87 percent for women). Schools throughout the country have been closed since March 2020 due to COVID-19 and now expected to start from mid-September.

"An educated woman is aware of her rights and is less likely to be a victim of domestic or sexual abuse. An educated mother contributes towards the prosperity and well-bring of her children, family and community," said Kaye. "The World Food Programme is proud to be working together with the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to ensure that all children are well-nourished, healthy and can access quality education."

Pakistan is home to 22.6 million children between the ages of 5 - 16 years who currently do not attend school (12.1 million girls and 10.5 million boys). The Newly Merged Districts have a rich demography with the adolescent population being over 1.6 million, 48 percent of which are girls. Youth have the ability to drive the economy forward, if investment in health and education is continued for quality services. The United Nations World Food Programme - saving lives in emergencies and changing lives for millions through sustainable development.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020

Comments

Comments are closed.