Traditionally, all societies have given preferences to boys
over girls when we talk about educational opportunity, and disparities in
educational attainment and literacy rates today reflect patterns that have been
shaped by the social and education policies and practices of the past. As a
result, virtually all countries face gender disparities.
Free and compulsory basic education is a fundamental right
of every human being as guaranteed by the universal declaration of human
rights. Educated citizens are a country’s assets and expenditure on education
is an investment that reaps long-term benefits. Despite its obvious benefits,
education has always taken a backseat when it comes to budgetary allocation and
effective utilization of resources in under-developed and developing countries.
The situation of girls’ education in Gilgit-Baltistan must
be viewed with in the wider Pakistani and south Asian context. Unfortunately,
inequalities across education such as gender disparities and urban-rural divide
are widespread in Pakistan. Key national indicators show that within south
asia, excluding Pakistan and Afghanistan has the lowest gender parity index at
0.78 as well as gross primary school enrolments.
Gilgit-Baltistan has made a rapid progress in education in
recent decades. Indeed, in many areas it has kept pace with national levels.
Still, together with much of rest of Pakistan, the region falls well short of
reaching the education related MDGs.
Weak educational outcomes in Gilgit-Baltistan derive largely
from the existing geographic and administrative realities that militate against
the effective and efficient delivery of services. Access to education seems to
be particularly problematic in those districts that are faced with major
geographical hindrances like long distances that discourage girls’ school
attendance and where institutions lack the capacity to provide quality
education.
In its policies and plans, the government of Gilgit-Baltistan
places strong emphasis on the promotion of gender equality and elimination of
gender discrimination at all level of education. However, the same is not
reflected in its budget allocation and expenditure patterns because
traditionally the pace and quality of service delivery in the education sector
has been dismal.
I would write down some findings from NEAS (national
education assessment system) regarding the expenditures and overall budget.
·
The size of GB’s ADP
increased by 19.3% from Rs 6789 million in FY 2012-13 to Rs 8100 million in FY
2013-14.
·
The total budget allocated
to the education sector increased by 22.4% from Rs 361 million in ADP 2012-13
to Rs 442 million in the ADP 2013-14.
·
The budget allocated to the
gender specific education schemes for boys increased by 45% from Rs 138 million
in 2012-13 to Rs 188 million in 2013-14. Contrarily, the total budget allocated
to gender sensitive education schemes slightly decreased by 3.4% from Rs 68
million in 2012-13 to Rs 66 million in 2013-14.
·
Despite the implementations
of various initiatives, girl’s access to education remains a serious challenge
to the education system in GB because many reasons: lack of educational
institutions, missing basic facilities in schools, high dropout rates of girls,
cultural and religious constraints, insufficient budgetary allocation and
unutilized development budget, and more than all, lack of effective demand for
quality education by the society.
I consider some
recommendations to improve the girls’ educational of the people of GB:
·
Increase female literacy
·
Enhance quality of
education
Improve budget utilization and service delivery.
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