Chairman Pakistan People’s Party Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has described the fact that more than three million children are out of school in the country as an challenging situation for the nation.“These figures should remind us that we still have a long way to go to catch up with the world in terms of literacy rate. We should also not forget that such challenges can only be met by a people’s government.”
According to a press release issued by Media Cell Bilawal House, the PPP Chairman in his message on World Literacy Day said that literacy rate is the main criterion for sustainable development. He said that inflation, unemployment and poverty as well as natural disasters resulting in from climate change have also severely affected the education sector in recent times.
As a result of last year’s record rains, 50 percent of school buildings in Sindh alone were severely affected by floods, he added. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that education has always been one of the top priorities of PPP. Educational reforms were introduced during the time of Quaid-e-Awam Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto to increase the literacy rate, free education upto matriculation and a large number ofnew schools and universities were established.
AllamaIqbal Open University was also set up during the reins of Quaid-e-Awam, which was the second university of its kind in the world at that time.ShaheedMohtarma Benazir Bhutto’s governments were allowed to run for a short period of time, but despite this, she took numerous initiatives such as increasing the education budget and establishing higher educational institutions. He said that the Federal government, under theleadership of President Asif Ali Zardari from 2008 to 2013, or the People’s government in Sindh, have taken numerous measures to increase the literacy rate.
Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that it is inevitable to bring the literacy rate to 100 percent for strong democracy and sustainable development and reiterated his determination that after winning the next general elections, the PPP will increase the education budget by 3percent of the GDP ratio, and will ensure world-class education for all Pakistani children like free of cost health facilities available to all Pakistani in Sindh NICVD, Gambit Institute, SIUT and Jinnah Hospital.
