Education promises progress, says minister

Islamabad : Nobody can stop Pakistan from progressing if its people get education, said information minister Barrister Syed Ali Zafar on Tuesday.

During the inaugural session of the Children Free Summer Book Club organised by the National Book Foundation here, the minister regretted that the successive government hadn't given education the due importance. He said education could help address population and health issues.

The minister said education prepared a nation for future challenges and time had come that it should be taken as a security issue. "Children have the qualities of heart and mind and they could become super heroes if they equipped themselves with education," he said.

The minister said children were the future of Pakistan as they would take up important roles for nation building.

He declared education and book reading powerful tools for changing the world and preparing nations for future challenges.

The minister said book reading inculcated important values, such as tolerance and created awareness about the points of view held by different people.

“We learn so much from books. Books raise our awareness about issues.”

He told the audience, including children, that he was an avid reader and used to read a book every week.

"I adopted the reading habit as my father encouraged me to buy and read books. Children should be motivated so they become habitual readers," he said.

The minister said a three-day book fair would be held in Murree and writers would be invited to the event so that people get the opportunity to interact and hold discussions with authors about books.

“After a discussion, when a writer signs a book, it is a matter of great joy for a person buying it.”

The minister said at the book fair to be organised from July 13 to 15 in Murree, children would get an opportunity to be among books and get familiar with the culture of book reading.

He said people from all over the country visited Murree and the fair would help project a soft image of Pakistan.

NBF chairman Dr Inamul Haq briefed the audience about his organization, saying the NBF was selling books worth Rs350 million every year through its outlets and it was taking steps to encourage the culture of book reading.