ISLAMABAD: As the Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association (FAPUASA) demanded funding for education to at least 4-5 per cent of the GDP, it expressed concerns about a letter by the Finance Division’s to the Higher Education Commission that proposed Rs25 billion in recurring budget only for the federally-chartered universities and research programmes for the next fiscal year.

“This step shows lesser commitment and low treatment of education at the national level and provinces are also being deprived of their federal funding. This letter should be revoked, and funding should be increased to 4 per cent to 5pc of GDP,” said representatives of FAPUASA.

Addressing a press conference at the National Press Club, General Secretary Dr Mohammad Uzair, Vice President Dr Mazhar Iqbal, President Islamabad Chapter Dr M. Iqbal and General Secretary Dr M. Jadoon demanded that the government revoke the said letter and all universities should be provided funding.

FAPUASA says will organise sit-in in Islamabad next week if move not reversed

They said all faculty members and varsity employees across Pakistan would organise a sit-in in Islamabad next week which will continue till the acceptance of their demands.

They said that in the fiscal year 2023-24, the federal government allocated 1.6 per cent of GDP to education, which was the lowest in the region. Within this allocation, they said higher education received only 0.44pc of GDP as a recurring grant (for salaries and utilities). They said since the fiscal year 2018-19, the HEC’s recurring grant had stagnated at Rs65 billion despite inflation.

FAPUASA representatives stated that the ruling parties in Pakistan had acknowledged the financial challenges faced by the education sector in their 2024 manifestos. They said the PML-N manifesto promised to increase education spending to 4pc of GDP besides enhancing allocations to the education sector at both federal and provincial levels.

The PPP manifesto likewise pledged to allocate at least 5pc of GDP to education, it added. “Given these commitments, it is imperative that these political parties should support education in general and higher education in particular,” they said, adding that this funding was essential to improving the financial condition of universities.

Comparing Pakistan with Bangladesh, they claimed that Bangladesh was “increasing its education budget by 40pc”. These countries increased their education budget by 600 times in the past while Pakistan reduced its education budget by 66pc, they claimed.

They said that the salaries of government employees have gradually increased by 60pc since 2021, but the Tenure Track System (TTS) for the faculty of universities has not seen any revisions.

The TTS system was introduced in Pakistan in 2007 to attract and retain young faculty with competitive, performance-based salary packages, though they were deprived of pensions and other perks. According to the policy, TTS salaries must be revised every three years but have only been revised three times: in 2011, 2015, and 2021, in 17 years.

Additionally, the tax rebate for faculty, which was 75pc, had been reduced to 25pc by the previous government. It was also observed that BPS (and parallel pay scales like OG and SPS) faculty must be given a fair chance to compete for the next cadres and their timely promotions should be taken up seriously.

The participants of the press conference said that FAPUASA urgently appealed to the HEC chairman, education minister, PM Shehbaz Sharif, and President Asif Ali Zardari to provide ample budget. They also asked them to extend government support and adhere to the educational funding commitments outlined in their political manifestos, i.e. increasing the budget 4-5pc of the GDP. They also demanded a one-time increase of 60pc in their TTS salaries, pension plan, and 75pc tax rebate in the current budget.

FAPUASA also demanded a 50pc increase in the salaries of BPS faculty. It also requested the government to take the issue of education seriously and as its top priority. It further urged the government to take the matter of the appointment of vice-chancellors throughout Pakistan seriously.

Published in Dawn, May 31st, 2024