QUETTA — With the financial support of the Netherlands, Save the Children has successfully implemented the Balochistan Education Program (BEP) in collaboration with Balochistan’s Education Department.
This was stated during the closing ceremony of the BEP on November 20 at the Quetta Press Club.
The event was attended by Dutch Ambassador Marcel de Vink, Secretary Education Saboor Ahmed Kakar, representatives of the implementing partners IDO, SCSPEB and SEHER and representatives of other civil society organizations. Teachers, students, members of the Parent Teacher School Management Committees and members of the district administration of Quetta, Mastung, and Killa Abdullah also attended the event.
According to the Save the Children officials, the geographic focus of the program over the last five years were three districts of Balochistan including Mastung, Killa Abdullah, and Quetta. Under this program, 25 girls’ schools have been upgraded from primary level to middle level, 10 girls’ schools have been upgraded from middle to high level, 105 Early Childhood Education centers have been developed, and 200 schools have been provided missing facilities such as washrooms, boundary walls, water tanks, flooring, and renovation.
Moreover, the BEP also provided support to the Education Department for enhancing its planning, budgeting, and management capacities through the establishment of Education Management Information Systems (EMIS) in the three focused districts.
Besides, these 1,100 teachers have also been trained in child-friendly teaching methodologies, child protection, positive discipline, disaster risk reduction, school health and nutrition and child-focused health education. Furthermore, 300 teachers were also trained on national curriculum of Early Childhood Education. Government officials were also trained on Education of Leadership Management and Faculty of PITE and BOC were trained on Peace Education and Emergent Literacy & Math.
Under the BEP Literacy Boost—an innovative, evidence-based action research—was piloted in 20 schools and communities of Quetta. Twenty four teachers were trained on pedagogies of basic reading skills while numeracy boost action research was piloted in 18 schools and communities of Quetta to enhance the capacity of 18 teachers on number and operations, measurement, and Geometry.
During the closing ceremony, students from various schools presented plays to express their feelings about the impacts of the BEP. With their performances, students highlighted the importance of School Health and Nutrition activities and stressed that cleanliness is an integral part of a healthy and successful school life.
Giving a detailed presentation on the achievements of the BEP, Manager Education, and Child Development, Save the Children, Mr. Haroon Rasheed Kasi briefed the audience about the successful implementation and milestones of the BEP. “The construction of science and computer laboratories in the 10 upgraded girls’ schools along with the training of teachers and 300 second grade students of these schools on Information Communication Technology is a major step towards providing quality and modern education to the girls of Balochistan,” Mr. Kasi added.
Speaking on the occasion, the Dutch Ambassador Marcel de Vink said that
“Education and development are for everyone. Education drives a country forward. It brings growth, prosperity and development at all levels of society, to men and women, young and old. It is also essential sector in Pakistan not just the Netherlands has for a very long time been supporting the women and girls.”
Balochistan’s Secretary of Education Mr. Saboor Khan Kakar appreciated the effort by the Save the Children supporting education for girls and he thanked the Netherlands for their support.
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Mir Behram Baloch is a journalist covering government and social issues in Balochistan. Read other articles by Mir.
