The 28th Foreign Correspondent Report

Female Education in Rural Areas of Pakistan: Barriers and Dreams of Parents
Mr. Muhammad SAJJAD (Pakistan)

Education is the key to success. Education also helps empower people and it is true that knowledge is gained
from nature and nurture. Pakistan is the sixth most populous country in the world with the 44th largest
economy (GDP). Around 61% of the population in Pakistan lives in rural areas, of which 50% are female,but unfortunately, they are the most deprived by all factors of basic life necessities. According to thePakistan Education Statistic report, out of the country’s population of 200 million, 22.84 million children,of which 60% are female, are not in school. This is the second highest figure globally after Nigeria. Only
612,531 girls are enrolled in education at the higher secondary level. 32% of primary school-age girls areout of school, compared with 21% of boys.
Barriers to female education in rural areas
There are several barriers to female education, especially in rural areas, e.g. gender inequality, racism, lackof resources, long distances, physical weakness, and cultural, religious and financial constraints. Due toless resources and mismanagement of available sources, the public faces a lack of schools, high fees forprivate schools and related costs, failure to enforce compulsory education, poor quality infrastructure andeducation in schools, teachers’ absences, lack of qualified teachers and other issues, including difficulties
in sending girls to schools because of external factors, such as child labor, gender discrimination, childmarriage, sexual harassment, insecurity and attacks on schools.
Pakistan investment in education
The GDP of Pakistan makes it the world’s 44th largest economy, according to the Human Rights Watch
report of 2018. Goal 4 in the UNDP SDGs 2030 goals recommends that 4-6% of a country’s GDP be spent
for education. Pakistan has invested less than 2.8% of its GDP, which is far below the recommended
percentage. There are few government schools in major cities and the situation is far worse in rural vicinities.
In the present situation, there are lower number of high schools than lower grade schools and there are evenfewer higher educational institutions, especially for girls. If one girl completed her education at a local
school in a rural area, she may not be able to move up to the next level due to long distance or some otherreason. Due to this basis private schools have seen massive growth but their fees are not affordable forlower income families. Although many of them are low-cost but have poor quality of education with very
less facilities like, suitable libraries, computer labs, wash rooms, broken chairs etc.
Dreams of Parents and Girls
In fact, all parents want their children to be highly educated and have bright futures, but there is no statesystem in place to deliver services efficiently. Numbers of schools for boys are double that of girls, which
is a dilemma for the socio-economic development of Pakistan. A large number of under-age children thatis mostly female have no secure access to proceed to school for one reason or other. The poor parents inrural areas cannot afford to pay high fees or transport fares for their children in upper-grade schools, which
are mostly located a distance away from their residences. As a result, the lofty dreams of parents andchildren remain quashed till death. According to a mother, “The school may be free, but there are demands
to pay for copies, stationery, and various fines of teachers on daily basis. The price of a school bag is morethan Rs. 500/- (US$3.67) which is equal to our two-day income. So, how can we educate our children?” Inaddition, it is generally observed that in mostly government owned schools, teachers demand for payment
from students on the name of various requirements like fines on absentee, repairing of classrooms, exampapers, water facilities etc. but the higher authority is taking no action against culprits.
Suggestions to overcome problems
Women are considered to be an essential and necessary segment of society and play a central role in thesocio-economic development of the country. To achieve this purpose, women should be equally educatedThe 28th Foreign Correspondent Reportand empowered to build a better nation. Therefore, the Pakistani government should adopt such policies tocreate pioneering solutions to facilitate the access of women in rural areas to education, as well as urbanareas.
The new political government of Pakistan’s ruling party, Pakistan Teherek-e- Insaf (PTI), was elected inAugust 2018, and the party’s manifesto promises huge reforms in the educational system. They intend toupgrade girls’ schools, improve the quality of schools, provide stipends annually to girls, provide
technology equipment, establish cadet colleges, transportation facilities, and vocational and special
education centers, as well as other possible amenities. These are positive steps which will give hope for abright future to every Pakistani girl living in all segments of the country, both urban and rural.

Village girls reading on the ground in a Government
Primary School(http://elections.alifailaan.ptextbooks-the-real-culprit/)“Shall I Feed My Daughter, or Educate her? “Barriers toGirls’ Education in Pakistan by Human Rights Watch

Links:
1. http://unesco.org.pk/education/documents/2018/DRAFT_PK_SDG-4_Gap_Analysis.pdf
2. http://edugrid.pk/girls-education-in-the-rural-areas-of-pakistan/
3. http://elections.alifaillan.ptextbooks-the-real-culprit/
4. https://www.hrw.org/new/2018/11/13/creating-neihborhood-schools-pakistan