ISLAMABAD: The World Bank has approved $150 million for a project aimed at improving education facilities and reducing drop-outs in Pakistan’s Punjab province, the Bank said on Saturday.
According to the 2021-22 Pakistan Education Statistics Report, the number of out-of-school children in Pakistan has surged to over 26 million. Although the percentage decreased from 44 percent in 2016-17 to 39 percent in 2021-22, the actual number rose from 22.02 million during this period.
The World Bank’s project, titled “Getting Results: Access and Delivery of Quality Education Services in Punjab Project (GRADES),” focuses on improving learning outcomes, recovering from learning losses during the COVID-19 pandemic, strengthening school management, and expanding school participation levels. It aims to enhance completion rates and increase years of schooling with better learning outcomes for both girls and boys.
The World Bank hopes that GRADES will directly benefit five million children, 7,000 headteachers, 165,000 teachers, and more than 3,000 teacher mentors in public schools as well as Punjab Education Foundation schools.
Najy Benhassine, the World Bank country director for Pakistan, stated that “Punjab has more than seven million out-of-school children. GRADES will help the government of Punjab substantially reduce this number and improve foundational learning outcomes for boys and girls already in school.”
The project plans to achieve this by scaling up and strengthening public-private partnerships, improving school preparedness among young children, enhancing the quality and use of teaching and learning materials and assessments, and improving the learning environment in schools.
Given Pakistan’s vulnerability to climate shocks, the project will incorporate a climate-resilient approach to mitigate the impact of natural disasters.
This includes the construction of approximately 5,400 additional climate-smart classrooms in primary schools with features such as raised plinths and reflective roofs.
The project will prioritize reconstructing schools damaged during the 2022 floods, especially girls’ schools, overcrowded institutions, and those in areas with high numbers of out-of-school children.
Furthermore, the project will include measures to strengthen disability inclusion by making school infrastructure more accessible and integrating inclusive education principles into teacher coaching.
Izza Farrakh, the task team leader for the project, emphasized the strong history of collaboration between the World Bank and the government of Punjab on education reform.
“GRADES will leverage this partnership for further innovation, such as climate-resilient classrooms and integrating climate change education into the curriculum. Reforms like these will help ensure a safe and conducive learning environment and prepare the next generation to be more resilient to climate shocks and natural disasters,” she said.
Pakistan, a member of the World Bank since 1950, has received over $46 billion in assistance to date. The current portfolio includes 55 projects with a total commitment of $14.7 billion.
