PU VC for enrolling out-of-school children

LAHORE:Punjab University Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Khalid Mahmood has said that a joint campaign must be launched to bring out-of-school children back to school for a better future of Pakistan.

He was addressing the 4th annual ‘National Conference for Research and Education’ with the theme of ‘School-deprived children: Causes and Solutions’, here organised by Institute of Education and Research. On this occasion, IER Director Prof Dr Tariq Mehmood, Chairman Department of Advanced Studies in Education Prof Dr Muhammad Shahid Farooq, coordinator of the conference Dr Shazia Malik, educationists, researchers, faculty members and students were present.

In his address, Prof Dr Khalid Mahmood said that unfortunately, education has not been among the top priorities in Pakistan. He said that some poor countries that became independent after us also moved ahead by promoting education and research. He said that despite the lack of resources, if we work together, it is possible to solve the problems being faced by the education sector. He said that according to the population of Pakistan, 39% of the children are out of school, which is a big tragedy. While, appreciating the IER for organising the conference, he said that young students are the centre of our hopes. Prof Dr Tariq said that out-of-school children could cause disorder and deterioration in the society when they grow up. He said that education is the basic right of every child for which more steps should be taken.