KARACHI, July 25: For the young schoolgirls on their first trip to Karachi, the big, bright lights and the glistening corridors of the local hotel were no less than fairyland. However, rather than be overawed or nervy, they were beaming with confidence, secure in the thought that their education would lead them to some better place sooner or later.

One wanted to be a lady health worker as she was inspired by the way “an LHW treats sick children”. Another one wanted to be like Farzana, a success story from the interior of Sindh, and yet another wanted to be a make-up artist.

These were no ordinary girls. Rather they were girls from marginalised communities in the interior the province. They had travelled from small towns and villages to Karachi to attend the Indus Resource Centre’s “10 years of contribution in rural education” event on Monday.

From the presentation of a thought-provoking tableau to their giggles whenever a camera was focused on their faces and their interaction with the media persons, the girls were a delight to watch and made one wonder how a little support goes a long way.

In her address on the occasion, IRC’s executive director Sadiqa Salahuddin said: “The more women are empowered, the more actively they will be able to take part in their personal and social uplift.” She said that their aim was to achieve equality for all humans and for that mainstreaming education and particularly imparting it to the females was important.

Talking about the journey that began in 2000, she said that it was a shaky start and “when we started out it felt as if things would never change.”

Although it might not seem like a drastic change, the lives of over 10,000 students in 130 schools in Khairpur, Sukkur, Dadu, Jamshoro and Karachi districts, did improve over the last few years, she said.

During the last decade, the IRC has worked on education and literacy with a particular focus on girls’ education, sustainable livelihoods, governance, democracy and human rights and disaster response.

She said the one thing that connected all these initiatives was the active participation of women and girls. Under a sustainable livelihood programme, women had been trained as masons and painters.Sharing her story, Farzana, an IRC worker said that she felt privileged to be a part of this team. “My journey wasn’t an easy one. My parents have nine daughters and one son. My father was a labourer but he felt that we should be educated. Despite his limited means, he sent us to schools and whatever I am today is due to my father.”

With a Masters degree, Farzana felt that it was her duty to give back to her community and was working hard on it. “Today, I am more aware than I was at the age of 22. Nine years of work with IRC has taught me that there are people in situations worse than what I personally experienced. However, one must not be deterred by what cannot be done. Rather one should focus on what can be done and try doing it more often. It is a sustained effort that helps us change our lives,” she said.

Then there was Steve Sheen, a physics graduate from Britain working as a head master at one of IRC’s schools in the interior, who highlighted the need for indefatigable efforts in the fields of education and health.

“It’s an experience in itself, working in a place where there is not much. However, the community living there is very supportive and the kids are eager to learn.”

Despite his limited Sindhi skills, Mr Sheen said, he was able to communicate with students. “Some of them are very bright but again lack of resources makes it harder for them to compete with candidates from better backgrounds. However, we should not stop good work because of this. Rather a persistent effort will help us in the years to come.” “Over the years I have seen IRC flourish as an organisation and better still is the fact that I have seen some hope in our district,” said former Khairpur DCO Abbas Baloch.

He said the place needed lots of health and education facilities and in this situation the IRC provided a sustainable model to follow. “I hope that more people will come forward and help the public sector deliver service to the masses,” Mr Baloch hoped.

Dr Kaiser Bengali, the chief guest, minced no words when it came to stating things as they are. “The state has to provide sufficient conditions for education and other sectors to flourish and if it is unable to provide these, questions will be raised about its credibility.”

Lamenting how graduates were unable to write a decent application, he blamed the faulty policies and the wrecked education system for the current state of affairs. “The state does not have the resources or the institutional capacity and this is where the public-private partnership comes in. We have seen some success but in the long run, it’s the duty of the state and not of civil society to provide amenities and necessities to the population.”

While the event was remarkable in that it highlighted the contributions and collective efforts of public-private partnership, it was also a stark reminder that a lot more was needed to be done for the people in Sindh and elsewhere.