Specific budget granted to schools: Murad abolishes additional TO, DEO, director posts

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, while presiding over a review meeting on school education, emphasised the importance of foundational learning and early childhood care & education (ECCE) and approved the decentralisation of financial and administrative powers to the school level for headmasters and supported the dissolution of additional or duplicate posts for town officers, District Education Officers (DEOs), and directors stressed the importance of digitizing the education department.

This digitisation will involve monitoring and evaluation (M&E) processes, such as tracking attendance for teachers and students using facial recognition technology. Additionally, there will be an effort to eliminate unnecessary administrative layers from the taluka to the divisional level.

A significant emphasis will be placed on technical education and skill development through initiatives like Middle Tech and Matric Tech, which will also incorporate STREAM Labs in both formal and non-formal sectors. The Chief Minister also highlighted the importance of public-private partnerships through the Sindh Education Fund (SEF) model and Education Management Organizations (EMOs), aiming to bridge the gap between primary and post-primary schools by enhancing existing schools and adding classrooms with essential facilities.

The meeting was attended by Education Minister Syed Sardar Shah, Chief Secretary Asif Hyder Shah, Ombudsman Sindh Sohail Rajput, PSCM Agha Wasif, Chairman of the Planning and Development (P&D) Najam Shah, Secretary of School Education Zahid Abbasi, Secretary of Finance Fayaz Jatoi, and others.

Enrolment Statistics: The Chief Minister was informed that there are 40,990 schools in the province, which include 36,300 primary schools, 2,600 elementary schools, 1,600 secondary schools, and 490 higher secondary schools. Current enrollment across all schools stands at 5.2 million, comprising approximately 3.09 million boys (59pc) and 2.12 million girls (41pc). The education minister reported that the number of out-of-school children is 7.8 million.

The CM set a target of bringing one million children to school during the next financial year. He expressed his satisfaction that the girls enrolment ration in the schools was encouraging.

To a question, the CM learnt that the net enrolment rate for primary education is 67 per cent, and for secondary education, it is 22 per cent. He emphasised the need to address the challenges in transitioning from primary to post-primary education by upgrading primary schools.

To facilitate this transition, Murad Ali Shah approved initiating second shifts of elementary schools within existing primary schools to help close the gap between primary and post-primary education.

Abolition of Posts: In consultation with the education department, the Chief Minister decided to abolish several positions of District Education Officers (DEOs) at the district level, including DEO SEMIS, DEO Academics, DEO Sports, and DEO Quality Assurance. The number of Taluka Education Officers (TEOs) will also be reduced; instead of four, there will be one TEO per taluka. Additionally, instead of having two DEOs (one for secondary and one for primary), there will be one DEO per district for better unity of command and efficient administration. Similarly, at the divisional level, there will be one Director of School Education instead of two.

Model Schools: The CM has decided to transform existing high schools into model schools, establishing four model schools in each taluka to enhance the quality of education. By the 2025-26 academic year, approximately 150 schools will be developed as model institutions, with a total of 600 schools expected to be transformed by the end of the 2028-29 academic year.

Governance & Management: The meeting decided to strengthen School Management Committees (SMCs), enhancing training and community engagement and decentralising powers at the school level through a clustering policy. The goal is to increase the institutional capacity of teacher training institutes such as STEDA, PITE, DCAR, and others.

The school clustering policy will be implemented across the province. A total of 1,656 clusters of schools have been identified. District Education Officers (DEOs) and heads of Cluster Hub Schools will receive training. The chief minister instructed the education department to notify the Cluster Hub Schools along with their respective job descriptions. The target for the 2025-26 academic year is to have 1,150 clusters with cost centres.

Missing Facilities: The Chief Minister stated that many schools lack essential facilities such as water, sanitation, washrooms, compound walls, and solar power. He directed the education department to empower headmasters to access these facilities through a school-specific budget. He approved upgrading 1600 primary schools to the secondary level, equipped with solar power and drinking water facilities

Shah instructed Education Minister Sardar Shah to develop a detailed plan that would allow for the allocation of a school-specific budget in the upcoming financial year.

Under the plan, the CM approved various initiatives, including capacity Building and Training. Continuous Professional Development (CPD) and pedagogy training for all Cluster Hub Schools. Training for Headmaster Subject Teachers (HSTs) and Subject Specialists, including ICT skills training and a review and update of the curriculum.

Under the Enhancement of Foundational Learning (FL), Mr Shah approved the Improvement of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) and the establishment of STREAM (Science, Technology, Religion, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) Labs and Skills Labs in post-primary schools.

He also approved transforming existing high schools into model schools and establishing smart classrooms in both elementary and high schools and directed the department to implement a teaching license system in Sindh.

A report indicated that 19,808 schools were damaged in the 2022 floods, with 4,089 of those schools currently being reconstructed under the ADP/PSDP programs. Sardar Shah told the Chief Minister that the damage to these schools has affected the enrollment of 2.3 million children. In response, the Chief Minister directed the minister to expedite the reconstruction efforts for the damaged schools.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025