CHARSADDA, May 7: A German non-profit organisation on Monday opened a ‘school of excellence’ in Charsadda, which has been completed in a year at a cost of Rs45 million.

The school with the capacity to enroll as many as 625 pupils will run as a higher secondary school. The three-storey seismic-compliant school features 24 purpose-built classrooms, a computer laboratory and three fully-furnished science laboratories, syllabi-based audio-visual resources, a spacious library and administration block besides venues for both indoor and outdoor sports.

Read Foundation, which is partnered with the German non-profit organisation, ‘Hasene, will run this school by drawing on its extensive experience of running an ever-growing network of 340 schools for more than 72,000 children since 1994.

Chairman of Hasene, Mr Zekl Toprak and honorary chairman of the Islamische Gemeinschaft Milll GorOs (IGMG), Mr Yavuz Celik Karahan unveiled the commemorative plaque to mark inauguration of the school in the company of the Hasene UK chairman Mr Ufuk Secgin, his spouse Mrs Fazilet Secgin and District Coordination Officer Charsadda Ajmal Khan.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by community members, education officials, local authorities, parents, teachers, and students enrolled in the school.

“Education is an investment for the future of individuals, communities and nations,” said Hasene chairman Zekl Toprak. “In any society, children are the future. Hasene is proud to be helping the Read Foundation to construct schools to provide underprivileged children a safe space in which to continue their education.”

Recounting Hasene's work in Pakistan Mr Toprak shared that their organisation had helped close to one million people through food aid, shelter and education in the aftermath of 2010 floods through the generous donations of tens of thousands of donors from European Muslims mainly of Turkish origin.

The school of excellence is an asset and we believe that quality education for children is necessary for the good future of Pakistan. It is now up to the local people to make sure that this new school is properly maintained and continues providing quality education, said Hasane UK chairman and Pakistan project manager Ufuk Secgln.