Education vital for uplift: Jhagra

Ahmad Nabi

LANDI KOTAL: The Governor, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Engineer Iqbal Zafar Jhagra has said that education plays an important role in creating a prosperous and tolerant society. He further said that youth is the real power that brings change in society and for the purpose; the tribal youth community had been indulged in healthy activity.

The views were expressed by the Governor while addressing the inaugural ceremony of Govt: High School, Hisara, Tehsil Bara, Khyber Agency on Wednesday. Additional Chief Secretary, FATA, Sikandar Qayyum, Jean, Francois Cautain, European Union Ambassador to Pakistan, Ignacio Artaza, Country Director, UNDP, Ms. Christian Munduate, Deputy Representative UNICEF Pakistan and Masood-ul-Mulk, Chief Executive Officer, SRSP, tribal elders and administration and forces officials were among the participants.

He said that a comprehensive package of social cohesion, income generation and education activities had been provided to communities in Khyber, Kurram, Orakzai and North Waziristan agencies. “More than 100 schools had already been rehabilitated, 408 teachers had been trained to provide better quality education for our children and Taleemi Islahi Jirgas were being formed to advocate for improved services and increased enrolment” he said. The Governor also pointed out that FATA Secretariat had earmarked Rs. 4.00 billion this year for the education sector, however, there were still more than 400 institutions in the area that require urgent rehabilitation and support in teachers training. In addition, he said, the needs and priorities of the Frontier Regions (FR) are also being taken care of in the drafting of our development plans, as they also lack basic facilities.

The Governor said that approximately 200,000 out of school children have been brought back into the regular education system in FATA. Girls’ enrolment and attendance is also our key priority, and the FATA Secretariat remains committed to address the specific needs of the girls’ schools with the aim to improving the basic school infrastructure and ensuring the provision of a safe learning environment therein.

Later on, the Governor along with European Union Ambassador to Pakistan inaugurated the prefabricated building in Government High School, Hisara, Khyber Agency and distributed prizes among the students.