Mission to be accomplish

Economy and education of Pakistan :

I belong to a nation that has been declared a failed state numerous times and has been predicted to not exist by 2015 by Washington. A country that grapples with overpopulation, poverty and energy crisis one at the same time, that’s the country I proudly belong to- Pakistan. Because history has witnessed, that revolutions occur only when a nation comprehends its problems and is ready to resolve them. However, while we count the many problems that stigmatize Pakistan, we fail to appreciate the various blessings we, as a nation, are bestowed with. Surrounded by warm waters, we are located at an ideal strategic geographic region for trade and travel. We also have not only the 6^th largest army in the whole world, but one of the strongest armies. We are amongst the 8 states that have declared nuclear weapons. We have vast mineral resources that yet remain to be tapped. We fail to recognize, that however poor our democracy is, it is far better than the many countries where people are still fighting for basic rights, namely Arab Spring. Our judicial institutions may not be the best in the world, but the lawyers’ movement has shown that we are a nation who believes in rule of law. 2005 earthquake demonstrated to the world, that however ethnically divided we may be, when a calamity befalls us, we are ready to give up everything for our fellow brothers. The bomb blasts have failed to erode our altruistic nature.

Education system in Pakistan

We also forget that we are a blessed nation that has 60% of people in the age of 16-25. According to World Economic Forum’s report, having a majority of youth is one of the biggest assets a country could have and Pakistan is amongst the few blessed nations. This is a golden opportunity for Pakistan, as for the next 10 years, the majority of our population will comprise of youth. Pakistan could witness a radical positive change if we, the youth of Pakistan commits to bringing about a change. We must not submit to the definition of Pakistan that highlights only how bad its conditions are, but the vast opportunities that are still available to us, and aim to revive Pakistan, as Jinnah had envisioned it

 However, if the asset of youth is not directed to be productive, it could turn into a big liability for the country. Educated youth can not only add phenomenally to the GDP, but could potentially reduce inequality as well. However, both these policies need to be implemented with great caution.Pakistan has primarily focused on buttressing higher education. Higher education Commission (HEC) has been established to facilitate students in pursuance of masters and Ph.D. programs. However, in my view, Pakistan needs to follow the example of East Asian economies, which have been successful in producing a productive labor force through focusing on primary education. They followed focused policies targeted at improving the human capital. This approach not only helped in raising the literacy levels, improving the economic performance of the country but also reduced inequality. However, in order to accomplish that they ensured that the return on education was not hampered by the excess supply of educated labor force, as the principle suggests, a greater supply leads to lower price (wages in this example).In Pakistan, one of the biggest de-incentivizing factors is that as there is not a unified system of education, the rate of return on education for the public schooling, the only form of education that is accessible and affordable to a vast majority of population, is really low. The total expenditure of government on education is appalling; it constitutes less than 2% of total budget.The following pictures would further delineate this issue by showing the contrast between infrastructure levels of government schools

government schools

private schools



Due to low investment in public education, the existence of ghost schools, the inability of government to revise the curriculum to meet the international standards, and the absence of checks and balances on teachers in public schools, the quality of public education is outmatched by that of private education. According to LEAPS survey, conducted in 2007, students in public schools will take 3 years to catch up with their age fellows in private schools.According to FAFEN report, the deal teacher-student ratio is 1: 20. However, in government schools of Punjab, the ratio is 1:37 while the ratio in private schools is 1:18. This highlights the level of communication between teachers and children that supplements the learning process. Private schools also engage students with extra-curricular activities and aim to buttress the communication skills and proficiency of English language that go a long way in ensuring success in the job market.

The following figures show the results from a survey conducted from 10 private and public schools of Lahore in order to decipher the participation of students in extra-curricular activities and hence their ability to communicate.Added to the low quality public education that is available and afforded by the vast majority, due to the dearth of employment opportunities, only the students graduated from the top few universities are able to grab the best employment opportunities, as employers prefer hiring students that have graduated from the private schools, due to aforementioned merits. This further fuels and exacerbates the problem of inequality, hence perpetuating and maintaining the vicious cycle.

Hence, if a well-focused strategy is undertaken by the government to ensure that good quality, primary education is available to the public, and simultaneously job opportunities are created to increase the demand so as to match the supply, the return on education will improve, thus incentivizing more people to pursue schooling.

author: Bakhtawar nageen