RAWALPINDI: As many as 323 schools in Rawalpindi district have been handed over to the Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) for management by NGOs, organisations and individuals.

The move is part of a plan to outsource an additional 500 schools, further reducing the number of government schools in the district to 1,486 out of a total of 1,809.

On the other hand, the Punjab Teachers Association called a meeting on Wednesday (tomorrow) to chalk out a plan to protest against the privatisation of government schools.

“We will start to protest as the Punjab government wants to get rid of educational institutions and involve private sector in education so that it can increase the fee and exploit teachers,” said Punjab Teacher Association Secretary General Raja Shahid Mubarrak while talking to Dawn.

Mr Mubarrak said that the future of teachers and students hangs in the balance as education will become expensive for the poor once schools are outsourced. He said it was expected that the number of out-of-school children would also increase in coming days due to people being unable to meet the expenses.

A total of 13,219 schools across the province will be outsourced and the Punjab Education Foundation will hand over these schools to individuals, NGOs and other organisations.

The utility bills of the schools will be paid by the PEF while private organisations will hire teachers on daily wages. The Punjab government will provide a fee of Rs700 per student to the PEF, which will be paid to the teachers on the basis of strength.

When contacted, District Education Authority Chief Executive Officer Yaseen Khan Baloch said the schools had been handed over to the Punjab Education Foundation. He said the first phase of outsourcing of schools had been completed and the second phase would begin soon.

Published in Dawn, September 3rd, 2024