Gender Enrollment Disparity Prevails in Former FATA

Fakhar-e-Alam

Peshawar: Education plays a crucial role in the socioeconomic development of human resources, empowering women to contribute productively to the country’s progress and fostering positive social change.

As the well-known proverb goes, “If you educate a man, you educate an individual. But if you educate a girl, you educate the entire nation.” Our constitution also mandates early education for all, highlighting the pivotal importance of female education in nation-building.

However, despite constitutional provisions and government efforts, the state of girls’ education in erstwhile FATA is concerning. 

The FATA annual education census reveals that only 37 percent of girls are enrolled in primary schools, with a drastic decline to just 5 percent at the secondary level. In contrast, 49 percent of boys are enrolled in primary schools, with 17 percent progressing to secondary education.

Multiple factors contribute to this predicament, ranging from socio-political and economic challenges to religious and cultural taboos.

“The foremost impediments to girls attending school in former FATA (newly merged KP districts) are cultural,” said Professor Dr Ibrahim Khan, former Director of Elementary and Secondary Education in KP. 

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“In tribal societies, cultural taboos, along with high unemployment rates and poverty, discourage girls from pursuing education.”

Dr Ibrahim explained that girls in these areas are often expected to assist their mothers with household chores, care for elders, and help their parents with agricultural tasks. Additionally, early marriages significantly hinder their educational opportunities.

He acknowledged that girls in newly merged districts of KP (former FATA) also lag behind in education due to a lack of political interest, a challenging law and order situation, militant attacks, and shortages of schools and teachers willing to work in the region.

“All of these factors have contributed to an increased dropout rate among female students. Now that these areas are part of KP, the government needs to prioritize rebuilding damaged schools to bring out-of-school children (OSC) into the educational fold,” Dr Ibrahim emphasized.

Former FATA Education Deficit

The 2021 survey conducted by the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) revealed that the number of out-of-school children (OSC) in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has reached approximately 4.9 million, including 1 million in former FATA. 

Among these OSC, about 2.9 million girls aged five to 16 years reside in settled districts, while one million children are in merged tribal districts, with 74.4 percent of girls and 38.5 percent of boys out of school across the province.

The survey further indicated that the rates of out-of-school children are particularly high in specific regions: 61 percent in North Waziristan, 63 percent in Bajaur, 61 percent in South Waziristan, and 51 percent in both Mohmand and Khyber, with 47 percent in Kurram and Orakzai.

In total, 3.67 million students are out of school, which includes 1.38 million boys and 2.38 million girls in settled districts, alongside 1.0067 million students in merged districts, consisting of 0.36 million boys and 0.65 million girls.

Razia’s Education Struggle

“I left school at the primary level after it was damaged by militants and began sewing clothes to financially support my family and my brothers’ education,” said Razia Bibi, 20, a resident of Tehsil Bara in the Khyber district. “But I hope the KP government will soon rebuild my school, allowing me and other girls to resume our studies.”

Ikhtair Wali, PML-N KP spokesman, expressed regret over the provincial government’s failure to restore educational facilities for female students in a timely manner.

“After the merger of erstwhile FATA into KP, the entire responsibility for education and the reconstruction of schools shifted to the provincial government,” he said. “However, the government has not succeeded in bringing out-of-school children into the educational fold.”

He added that the provincial government could have made significant progress by addressing these issues rather than engaging in political maneuvering and creating unrest. 

“Instead of combating illiteracy, strengthening infrastructure, and rebuilding damaged schools, the KP government has been outsourcing public sector schools, which will deprive thousands of poor students of free education.”

Out-of-School Solutions

On the other hand, Sahab Khan, Chief Planning Officer of the Education Department, stated that a target has been set to enroll 300,000 out-of-school children (OSC), including girls, by the end of this month. “To achieve this, approximately 300 new schools per year are needed for their enrollment, alongside around 15,667 new schools to accommodate fresh students,” he noted.

He informed that under the Alternate Learning Pathways (ALP) program for older OSC, over 58,000 girls have been enrolled in 1,692 ALP centers established with the assistance of government departments and international donors.

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Assessment tools have been developed for ALP classes and the Early Care and Education (ECE) program for girl students, focusing on languages, mathematics, and social-emotional competencies. Thousands of classrooms have been transformed into modern nurseries across the province, including erstwhile FATA, while 1,600 ECE centers will be established through GPE funding over the next five years.

Sahab Khan also mentioned the provision of ECE teaching materials to girls’ schools in erstwhile FATA, as well as spending over Rs. two billion on providing furniture to schools. Additionally, scholarships have been disbursed among female students, showing an attendance rate of 80 percent.

Stars of KP, Rehamatul Alamin, and ETEA merit scholarships have encouraged student enrollment. Sahab Khan highlighted a stipend program that covers all seven districts and sub-divisions in the merged areas, along with a voucher scheme, incentives for female education under BISP, a stipend project for students in grades 1-12, and the provision of school bags and stationery.

While these measures are a positive development, the overall political and law-and-order situation in the province is of greater significance. The provincial government must shift its focus from mere political maneuvering to addressing these critical issues to achieve the desired results.

The feature report was released by APP on September 28, 2024.