Institution for out-of-school-children opens

Islamabad: The Pakistan Alliance for Girls Education (PAGE) opened its third community-based ‘Star School’ in Aspalal Colony -- an unchartered settlement in the Capital Territory -- as part of its nationwide Out-of-School-Children (OOSC) programme that aims to enrol 1 million young boys and girls in schools all over Pakistan.

Senator Muhammad Ali Saif inaugurated the school and appreciated the efforts of PAGE, its ambassadors and the wider partnership towards reducing the number of OOSC across Pakistan. PAGE is one of the key partners of this multi-partner girls’ education initiatives, which is co-funded by the Education Above All Foundation of Qatar, the Ministry of Education and Professional Training, Japan International Cooperation Agency, and American Refugee Committee Pakistan.

In addition to help from overseas Pakistanis in the United Kingdom, PAGE aims to open 100 ‘Star Schools’ in communities where literacy rate among female children is lower than male children. This learning model of Star School is designed to address the massive size of an estimated 13 million out of school girls across the country. The mode is cost-effective and easy to replicate in communities. PAGE is acting as a bridge between donors, policy makers and practitioners to come together and address the gender gap in education in Pakistan and to create solutions to overcome the broader challenges facing the education sector.

The Executive Director of PAGE Fajer Pasha and PAGE Ambassador from England Wasim Ahmed were also present on the occasion. Fajer said, “In order to bridge the gap in gender education in Pakistan, we need to ensure access to safe and quality education for girls in small communities who otherwise will not be able to attend a school.