The Punjab government has allocated Rs 30.129 billion in the provincial budget of education for the year 2008-09 which is 40.3 percent higher than the allocation for the last financial year. The primary focus, however, is on provision of quality education in the province and changing Punjab in to an enlightened and educated province, says the budget documents.
The government has allocated Rs 16,454 million for the school education this year against Rs 8,488 million of the previous year with the increase of 93.9 percent whereas the government has allocated 9,100 million for higher education.
The government has allocated Rs 1,825 million for special education for the year 2008-09, which is 91.2 higher than the allocation of the previous year. The government has decided to equip schools with latest equipment of information technology in secondary and higher secondary schools and has allocated Rs 4,929 million for this purpose. The government has allocated Rs 1,250 million for eradication of illiteracy in its programme of literacy and non-formal basic education against the previous allocation of Rs 12,00 million, which is 4.2 percent higher.
According to the budget document, the government has also accorded priority to the provision of health facilities with a sound health care system in partnership with the private sector and has allocated and Rs 9 billion for health sector which is 38.4 percent higher than previous year in the provincial budget 2008-09.
In health sector, the government's emphasis on improving primary and preventive health and secondary health care and has allocated Rs 5,414 million as compared to Rs 3,835 million of the last year. The government has allocated Rs 8,000 million in the financial year 2008-09 for water supply and sanitation, which is 23 percent higher than the last years allocation of Rs 6,500 million.
The government has allocated Rs 1,578 million for the Accelerated Programme for Health Care against the allocation of Rs 520 million as compared to the last year. An amount of Rs 835 million has been allocated for the medical education against Rs 325 million of the last year and the government has allocated Rs 2,839 million for the Teritary Care Hospitals against Rs 2,210 million for the previous year. The government is also committed to achieving Millennium Development Goals in Health and Education by 2015.