STEP – Science, Technology, and Education in Pakistan

Dawn News reported this week that the adoption of the new National Education Policy is being delayed by the government, for no clear reason. The work on this new policy started in 2005, and the first milestone was the white paper produced by the Ministry of Education in 2007. Based on this white paper, the policy document was finalized by 2009, but has not yet been adopted by the government.

The review of the current education policy was started in 2005, well before the expiry date of the previous education policy. This is explained, rightly so, in the introduction of the new policy draft:

Two main reasons prompted the Ministry of Education (MoE) to launch the review in 2005 well before the time horizon of the existing policy framework (1998 – 2010) had approached. Firstly, the policy framework has not served as a satisfactory guide, as the policies pursued under that framework had not produced the desired educational results. Performance of the education sector has been deficient in several key aspects, most notably in access rates, and in quality and equity of educational opportunities.

The white paper also summarizes the gaps in the education sector in this paragraph:

The “education condition” in Pakistan is far from acceptable with deprivation being experienced by  large sub-groups – from children to adults. The existing education system has failed to cater to the needs of the children. Resultantly, a large majority of children stay out of school; another significant  majority goes to school but do not find education productive and therefore drop out. Those who continue school are not being equipped well for “life in the 21st century”. Though policies to promote quality education have been formulated and promulgated from time to time, successive failures of the promises and the practice of missing the well marked goal posts have created a credibility gap.

As Dawn points out, the delay is unexplained and perhaps hints at political considerations taking over:

After extensive consultations, in 2007 a white paper was produced, offering a sensible approach. But for unknown reasons the government has been dillydallying on the matter. Last year, a Canadian expert was called in and another draft was prepared in 2009. Even that was shelved in April when it was placed before the federal cabinet which felt it was not good enough and needed more input from the provinces. Nothing has been heard of it since then.

Going through the policy draft and the white paper, one can well understand that a lot of good work has gone into both the documents. The preparation of the white paper presented a new consultative approach by the Ministry of Education,  by incorporating extensive input from educational policy experts and other stake holders (see Annexure 1 of the white paper). Initially, a review of all previous education policies and reports was undertaken. Next, 23 different ‘Green Papers’ were written on issues related to education in Pakistan. These were subsequently shared with key stakeholders for feedback. The Ministry also undertook three research studies, on review of previous policies, a study of the legal framework for education, and a study on how far the tangible targets of the previous education policy have been met. A number of consultations were held after this, including issue roundtables and education conferences in each province. Focused consultations with key organizations, such as IED-Agha Khan University, HEC and National Reconstruction Bureau were also held. Feedback from these discussions was then incorporated into six thematic papers. All of this input was summarized into a white paper, published in Dec 2006 and subsequently revised in February 2007.

Is the delay deliberate and politically motivated, or does the government have genuine concerns regarding the policy?