Education suffering under feudal structure, says Khalid Maqbool

After the 18th Amendment, education became the responsibility of the provincial governments, but it is still under the control of a feudal structure. As many as 30 million children are out of school, and there is a significant issue of ghost schools and teachers.

Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, federal minister for education and science & technology, made these remarks at a session at the 17th International Urdu Conference organised by the Arts Council of Pakistan on its last day on Sunday.

He stressed the need for transforming knowledge into wisdom.

He highlighted that 70 per cent of gold medallists were girls, but 80 per cent of female students stayed at home after completing their education, which was detrimental for society.

The session was titled ‘Taleem ki Surat e Haal’. The other speakers included Sadiqa Salahuddin, Sindh Higher Education Commission Chairman Dr Tariq Rafi, Amjad Siraj Memon, Mujib Sahraei, and NED University Vice Chancellor Dr Sarosh Lodi.

Dr Jaffer Ahmed performed the duties of moderator.

Dr Rafi mentioned that there were 30 government and 37 private universities in Sindh. He noted that Pakistan had a total of 284 government universities, which was a low number for a population of 250 million.

Memon explained that medical universities were no longer limited to MBBS degree as medical technology was now a thriving field with global demand. Due to the high number of employees, most funds were consumed by salaries and pensions, he said.

He added that 80 to 85 per cent of medical admissions were secured by female students.

Dr Lodi shared that the NED graduates did not need any additional degrees, as students from the varsity were employed in 24 countries around the world. He emphasised that engineering education provided better opportunities for livelihood.

Sadiqa spoke about the positive changes in schools in interior Sindh, noting that the people of Sindh had a strong desire for education. She was of the view that parents were now willing to educate their daughters.