Call made for declaring 2026-27 as ‘Year for Revival of Girls’ Education in KP’

PESHAWAR, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th May, 2026) A pre-budget seminar on girls’ education concluded with a consensus among participants that the upcoming fiscal year 2026-27 should officially be declared as the “Year for Revival of Girls’ Education in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.”

The participants observed that such a declaration would help mobilize resources, attract greater policy attention and accelerate efforts aimed at improving female literacy and expanding educational opportunities for girls across the province.

The seminar was jointly organized by Blue Veins, Malala Fund and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Commission on the Status of Women Provincial Oversight & Advisory Committee on Girls Education.

People from different walks of life, including parliamentarians, education activists, officials of education departments, religious scholars, girl students, media persons and representatives of relevant government institutions attended the event.

A large number of female parliamentarians, including MPA Amina Sardar, Shazia Tehmas, Mehar Sultana Advocate, Shazia Jadoon, Rehana Ismail and former MPA Madiha Nisar, also participated in the seminar.

Welcoming the participants, Chairperson KPCSW Dr. Sumara Shams informed the audience that the Commission had constituted a Provincial Oversight and Advisory Committee on Girls’ Education, which has formulated a number of recommendations to be submitted to the Chief Minister.

She urged all stakeholders to share practical suggestions for improving the state of girls’ education in the province, assuring that valuable proposals would be incorporated into the committee’s recommendations.

Education Champion Malala Fund and Programme Manager Blue Veins, Qamar Naseem said the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government had taken significant steps for promotion of girls’ education; however, numerous challenges still persist, depriving millions of girls of their fundamental right to education.

He said the outgoing fiscal year witnessed encouraging progress in literacy improvement after the notification of rules of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Free and Compulsory Primary & Secondary Education Act, 2017.

Qamar Naseem stressed that investment in girls’ education was essential for social development, women empowerment, poverty alleviation and sustainable economic growth.

He informed the participants that according to estimates, around 4.9 million children are out of school in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, of whom nearly 2.9 million are girls.

He added that if data regarding out-of-school children is streamlined by including students enrolled in religious seminaries and unregistered private schools, the figure may decrease, but still a substantial number of children remain deprived of educational opportunities.

Qamar also called for increased budgetary allocations for the construction of girls’ schools, recruitment of female teachers, provision of missing facilities and improved access to education in remote and underdeveloped districts.

<?php /*?> <?php */?>

Senior Planning Officer of the Education Department, Mr. Luqman, informed participants that the figure of 4.9 million out-of-school children was estimated during the 2023 census.

However, he said, several measures taken over the past two to three years for enrollment of children had reduced the number of out-of-school children to 2.6 million.

He said the Education Department was focusing on divisional and district-level strategies, as each region has its own dynamics and a uniform policy cannot produce identical results in all areas.

Luqman said around 7,000 schools in Malakand Division lack basic facilities such as labotories, furniture, boundary walls and electricity connections, due to which nearly 659,000 children remain out of school.

He informed the seminar participants that a scheme for construction of 10,000 classrooms would be included in the new Annual Development Programme to help overcome the shortage of space in educational institutions.

Additional Chief Child Protection and Welfare Commission KP, Ijaz Khan, said work was underway on framing standard operating procedures (SOPs) for all institutions dealing with children to ensure their protection, safety and proper upbringing.

He said the Child Commission was fully cooperating with Blue Veins in its efforts to promote education, particularly girls’ education, in the province.

Chief Executive Officer of Malala Fund, Dr. Nishat Riaz, said budget documents reflected the moral commitment of governments and public representatives, while implementation of development schemes demonstrated the seriousness of authorities in improving the literacy rate.

She urged participants to renew their commitment that efforts for promotion of education would continue until every child is properly enrolled in school.

During open discussion, Maham Nafees, a student representing the Rise and Shine Girls Education Network KP, demanded reduction in transport and fuel charges, saying many parents were unable to afford transportation expenses and had stopped sending their children to schools.

She also called for expansion of the free transportation facility for girl students from 10 districts of KP to the entire province.

Another student, Ayesha, demanded provision of clean drinking water and proper hygiene facilities in school washrooms.

Chief Khateeb KP, Maulana Tayyab Qureshi, called for collective public contribution to overcome shortages of basic facilities in schools, which were discouraging students from attending classes.

He said education was essential for the proper development of the younger generation and urged society to play its role in ensuring that every child goes to school and receives quality education.

Later, Shazia Atta, Secretary KPCSW and female students representing Rise and Shine Girls Education Network KP submitted recommendation on girl’s inclusive budgeting for the fiscal year 2026-26 with Education Department of KP.