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Question 2: Poor Primary Education System: The Achilles’ heel in Pakistan’s Economic

Development

Aysha Malik

Class of 2011

HOD 2420

Professor Brian Heuser

November 11, 2009 (Fall 2009)

HOD 2400-01

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Abstract

Pakistan’s fragmented and underdeveloped education system has hindered the country’s

economic development. Education plays a fundamental role in building both human and

economic capital. Empowering individuals with knowledge allows them to give back and

eventually increase their output. Increased economic participation directly impacts the stability

of a country. Unfortunately, Pakistan’s primary education system has thwarted this progress. The

relationship between primary education and economic development is explored through several

economic theories and theorists. An analysis of international organizational aid’s effectiveness is

subsequently addressed. Lastly, policy recommendations focused on decentralizing the

government’s role in the education system are provided. Ultimately, it is clear that a nexus

between effective primary education and positive economic development exists. People are the

engine of growth but currently they are stuck in the slums of Pakistan.

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Poor Primary Education: the Achilles’ heel in Pakistan’s Economic Development

Primary education is imperative for development. It promotes an industrious and

informed citizenry and opens opportunities for the socially and economically disadvantaged

echelons of society. The United Nations subscribes to this tenet in their Declaration of Human

Rights stating, ―Everyone has the right to [an] education‖ (1948). In Pakistan, however, the

dichotomy between the quality of education practiced and the vision detailed under the Universal

Declaration of Human Rights are gravely different. This paper investigates how Pakistan’s

neglected primary education system has crippled the nation’s economic development. Economic

theories subscribing to this tenet will subsequently address how education can serve as an

effective remedy to cure some of Pakistan’s economic woes. Members of the international

community such as the World Bank and USAID have contributed significant resources to reform

Pakistan’s education system; the use of these funds will subsequently be assessed. Despite the

effort of several international organizations, illiteracy continues to impede economic

development in Pakistan, thus recommendations on how to proceed will be presented.

Importance of Reforming Pakistan’s Education System

Education plays a pivotal role in building both human and economic capital. It empowers

individuals with the necessary information to increase their productivity, thereby encouraging

them to participate in the labor force, helping to build a robust economy. Studies show that

education and the workforce’s skill sets are inextricably linked to economic growth and raising

productivity (Amjad, 2005). Since the main source of differences in living standards and

development among nations is a disparity in education and human capital, Pakistan’s primary

education system is explored. A poor education system in Pakistan has increasingly become an

international concern. Limited educational opportunities have handicapped economic

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opportunities, which in turn have made young Pakistanis eager for a better life and vulnerable

targets to extremist groups (Bajoria, 2009). In August 2009, chief counterterrorism adviser to the

White House John Brennan reiterated this notion stating, ―It is why they [the extremists] offer

free education to impoverished Pakistani children, where they can recruit and indoctrinate the

next generation‖ (Bajoria). According to the World Bank, nearly half the adult population of

Pakistan cannot read, and net primary enrollment rates remain the lowest in South Asia (Bajoria).

Although advancements have been made, failure to reform Pakistan’s primary education system

carries serious implications, for both economic development within the country and for global

security.

Quality of Education in Pakistan

Pakistan is an interesting paradox. ―It has a well-educated and entrepreneurial Diaspora

who thrive as small business owners in industrial economies, skilled workers in Gulf States, and

high officials in international organizations‖ (Easterly, 2001, p. 1). The country has seen

respectable per capita growth since partitioning from India and has been privy to intense

involvement by donors and international agencies, receiving over $58 billion in foreign aid

(Easterly). As the third largest recipient of official development assistance, one would assume

that Pakistan’s investment in human capital would be greater. To the contrary, Pakistan’s literacy

rate hovers at 49.9% while 24% of its citizens continue to live below the poverty line (CIA,

2008). As William Easterly (2001) notes, there is a pattern of growth without educational

development in Pakistan.

The faulty development pattern in Pakistan follows a long history of negligence on the

government’s behalf. Despite receiving the aforementioned aid packages and international

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advice, government officials have not made improving the education system a priority.

According to UNESCO records, Pakistan spends 2.9 percent of its gross domestic product on

education, slightly less than India's 3.2 percent and well below the U.S.'s 5.2 percent (Toosi,

2009). This education system has consequently matured into a fragmented and inadequate

system. When parents are sending their children to school they must choose between a free

madrassa, a government-run public school, or a private school. Within this fragmented system,

the quality of education has suffered from poor curriculum, unqualified teachers, and an

infrastructure that is deficient and physically falling apart. These divisions have invariably led to

intractable problems that have directly impacted social and economic development.

Madrassa Schools

The majority of parents in rural Pakistan either lack access to private schools or are

unable to pay the tuition fees which are approximately 1300.78 rupees a year that converts to

$27.87 U.S. dollars (Andrabi, Das, & Khwaja, 2002). Those parents that live near public schools

often choose not to send their children to these institutions since the quality of education is poor.

Impoverished parents in rural areas usually choose to send their children to Madrassas that

provide a religious education, food, and housing (Ray, 2006). Madrassas account for one percent

of school enrollment in Pakistan. Numerically, this means that over half-a-million students are

being taught at one of the 7,000-10,000 established institutions.

Unfortunately, half a million students attending Madrassas each year receive a poor

education that inadequately prepares them to integrate into a globalized world. In reality, the

crux of the problem at Madrassas is the type of education provided for children. Syllabi contain

no world history, math, science, technology or vocational training unless a student wants to

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become a Muslim cleric (Looney, 2003). According to Looney, ―Their graduates are unable to

multiply, spell their own names in English, find their nation, or for that matter any other country

on a map and are very ignorant of everyday happenings in the world‖ (Looney, 2003, p. 263).

Stifling the creativity of these children and breeding bigotry have become defining

characteristics of these schools. The children that attend Madrassas are often uneducated, young,

and dependent on their instructors for guidance. Therefore, the poor instruction is bred both out

of outdated curriculum and unqualified teachers.

Instructors at Madrassas are known for censoring the material they teach to students. Part

of this comes from the fact that an individual cannot teach at a Madrassa until they have been

approved by a Muslim cleric. Even so, these conservative, male teachers are frequently

indifferent to their students. The rote teaching method used at Madrassas is detailed in this

unfortunate inscident:

Crouching on a threadbare carpet, the young boys rocked backwards and forwards, their

voices blending into a medley of high-pitched chants. They sat cross-legged beside a low

wooden bench on which were propped copies of the Koran. A row of 20 white-capped

heads bobbed to and fro as the boys pored over their texts. Their bearded teacher, perched

on a cushion at one end of the dark, crowded room, appeared indifferent. He ignored his

tiny charge, aged between six and eight, as they concentrated on memorizing all 6,666

verses of the Koran, learning two words of the Arabic text at a time (Looney, 2003, p.

263).

Another disconcerting component of Madrassas is the fact that malleable young minds are taught

a distorted version of Islam and educated in violence. Most religious schools ―include weapons

and physical training in their regimen, as well as fire branded lessons on speechmaking where

rhetoric is memorized against America and liberal politics‖ (Looney, 2003, p. 264). With spartan

classrooms and strict single-minded teachers, children that attend these religious institutions are

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unprepared to pursue secondary or tertiary education, preventing real contributions to Pakistan’s

economic development.

Public-Run Government Schools

Each year, students graduating from Madrassas receive an education that lacks

substantive material. Unfortunately, the 65% of Pakistani children enrolled in Pakistan’s public

school system do not fare much better than these Madrassa students (Andrabi, 2009). Like

Madrassas, public schools in Pakistan indoctrinate students with distorted information. This

distorted information comes from The Provincial Textbook Boards (PTBs) which has

manufactured textbooks for Pakistan’s public schools since the 1960s (Ray, 2006). The

International Crisis Group underscores the fact that, PTB produces textbooks that align with the

policies and national curriculum framework of the Federal Ministry of Education’s Curriculum

Wing. Monopolizing the textbook industry allows the government to limit published

information. According to Major Ray,

Restrictions on educational content are rigid--the government disallows any reflection of

Pakistan’s ethnic, social and economic diversity in any educational material. Worse, the

state distorts the educational content of the public school curriculum, encouraging

intolerance along regional, ethnic, and sectarian lines, to advance its own domestic and

external agendas (Ray, 2006, p. 56).

The memorization of distorted information has taken a toll on student’s analytic skills. Studies

show that public school students exceed on rote learning compared to reading comprehension,

analytic questions, and life skills. Pervez discovered that at the end of 5th

grade, over 60% of

children were proficient in rote learning while only 18-27 percent could write a letter, read and

demonstrate an understanding of life skills requiring original thought and critical thinking skills

(Mirza, 2003). Public school students have been alienated from succeeding as the lessons they

learn in the classroom are saturated with political dogma and inaccuracies. As mentioned, the

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United States is often portrayed as an aggressor. Failing to provide quality education needed to

allay the spread of poverty has perpetuated economic development problems. Without proper

schooling it is difficult to compete and develop products in the twenty-first century.

The quality of education is also constrained by an insufficient number of qualified

teachers. The majority of instructors working at public schools are untrained or provided with

rudimentary training. In fact, most primary school teachers, principally women, have had fewer

than 10 years of education (Kazmi, 2005). Moreover, they are unfamiliar with core courses such

as mathematics and, therefore, lack the capability to adequately teach class lessons (Kazmi).

Another component hindering teacher’s effectiveness is the lack of incentive to improve

performance. The education system is not structured to reward advancement opportunities or

salary increases. Consequently, little motivation for progress exists for students and teachers

alike.

Pakistan’s public educational woes stem from outdated curriculum, inexperienced

teachers, and the poor infrastructure of the school buildings. These factors have created a toxic

environment for learning and growth. In 2008, a Human Development Report of the federal

government found, ―one out of 40 schools do not have a boundary wall, one-fifth are without

electricity and drinking water facility and one-fourth do not have any class room furniture, one-

seventh do not have lavatories‖ (Interface: Your Education Partner, 2008). Only 39 percent of

public schools have been declared ―functional,‖ this means that only four out of ten schools

actually provide students with a substantive level of education (Ray, 2006). T.M. Qureshi, an

official at the Ministry of Education noted the malfeasance by government officials stating, ―The

quality of education in the public sector is deteriorating day by day‖ (Interface: Your Education

Partner, 2008). As the quality of education decreases, Pakistan’s future productive workforce

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dissipates. Meanwhile, 43.6 million of Pakistan’s 70 million youth do not attend school

(Interface: Your Education Partner, 2008). Pakistan’s current education system is seemingly a

poverty trap that continues to breed discontent. As more children receive outdated schooling or

stay at home, the dearth of well educated and skilled citizens increases. .

Assessing Economic Implications of Inadequate Education

Examining Pakistan’s lagging economic development through the lens of education is

both important and relevant. Currently, the education that children receive from government

operated schools and Madrassas fail to provide students with foundational skills essentially

needed in the global economy. UNESCO purports ―on average students do not achieve

competency on more than half the material in the 5th grade curriculum‖ (Interface: Your

Education Partner, 2008). Fifty percent of individuals in Pakistan are trapped in a cycle of

poverty and unable to help modernize Pakistan’s economy. Instead, this sector of Pakistan’s

population stagnates in low-skilled industries such as agriculture and perpetuates the country’s

inability to progress.

Pakistan’s dependence on agriculture, specifically the cotton industry, has stifled

economic growth into more advanced markets. Currently, more than 70 percent of the country’s

manufactured exports depend on cotton and more than 40 percent of total employment comes

from the cotton industry (Amjad, 2005). Over the years, manufacturing cotton has served

Pakistan’s economy well, but prosperity in this market has stagnated as technology evolves.

Successfully assimilating into today’s international marketplace will require Pakistan to develop

a skilled labor force that can compete with other developing nations such as China and India. In

order to reach this level, children must graduate primary school with an understanding of

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mathematics and reading comprehension. However, Pakistan’s integration into advanced markets

is seemingly impossible because three out of five persons in the country currently cannot read or

write (Mirza, 2003). Several economic theories acknowledge a correlation between investments

in the education system and economic development.

The economic principle known as, the endogenous growth theory explains how education

impacts developing country’s economic output and economic development. The theory suggests:

Economic backwardness is highly linked to low labor efficiency and training, deficient

supplies of entrepreneurship and slow growth in knowledge. The countries that have

surged ahead, on the other hand, are characterized by high level of human capital

accumulation where the educated labor force has raised the level of output and the rate of

growth over a sustained period of time. (Hussain, 2005)

This model depicts how the quantity and quality of education influences the labor force’s

effectiveness and efficiency. Based on the research discussed, it is evident that the poor

education that many Pakistani students receive has inhibited Pakistan’s economic output. A

study by Robert Topel underscores the endogenous growth theory stating, ―based on data on

output per worker and educational attainment for 111 countries over a 30-year period (1960-90)

[found] that a one-year increase in average years of schooling for a country’s workforce raises

output per worker between 5 and 15 percent‖ (Amjad, 2005). Statistically, this increase in output

is critical. Currently, only 63 percent of Pakistani children complete primary school (Stuteville,

2009). If more resources were invested in building human capital, and if every child attended

school for just one additional year, Pakistan’s output would increase exponentially and help

develop its economy. The Social Policy Development Center published a study supporting

literacy development, ―In Pakistan, it has been shown that districts with a higher literacy level

have a higher level of development‖ (Hussain, 2005, p. 1).

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In The Process of Economic Development, economists James Cypher and James Dietz

agree with the endogenous growth theory and that an educated labor force is a critical component

of building both human and economic capital. Cypher and Dietz suggest that ―Education is the

means by which a nation is able to appropriate from and share in the gains arising from

technological and knowledge advances at the world level by augmenting the economy stock of

human capital‖ (Cypher & Dietz, 2009, p. 391). The correlation between taking stock in

education and economic output proved profitable for several High Performing Asian Economies

(HPAEs). The World Bank found that enrollment in primary education in 1960 predicted

astounding percentages of total economic growth from 1960-1985. The data went as follows:

Hong Kong— 86% of total predicted growth

Thailand— 87% of total predicted growth

Indonesia — 79% of total predicted growth

Malaysia— 73% of total predicted growth

Japan— 58% of total predicted growth (Cypher & Dietz, 2009, p. 406)

Clearly, a relationship exists between investing in youth and output, as several Asian

countries benefited from this venture in the 1980s. Cypher and Dietz further acknowledge the

relationship between primary education and HPAEs integration into the technological world

stating, ―the level of primary education was far and away the most important contributor to the

predicted growth rates of the HPAEs and Japan‖ (Cypher & Dietz, 2009, p. 406). A similar

investment in Pakistan could certainly prove fruitful for its economy. According to the Journal

of Asian Economics (2006), ―Pakistan in her efforts to promote democracy and development

must pursue the example of those countries that have built stronger civil and political institutions

and made investment in people as the key to enhance their development prospects‖ (Aslam &

Khan, 2006, p. 918). Pakistan can engineer economic development by investing in education and

its people.

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Economist William Easterly also develops a case for primary education in The White

Man’s Burden, stating that resource allocation should begin with primary schools (Easterly, The

White Man's Burden, 2006). This is consistent with other economic theories, like the Millennium

Development Goals (MDGs) posited by Jeffrey Sachs. According to Sachs, quality education is a

prerequisite for upward social and economic mobility. A significant component of this upward

mobility though is the meticulous use of development aid (Sachs, 2005). Unlike Sachs, Easterly

opposes investing large sums of aid to improve social and economic development.

Easterly references the failed Social Action Program in Pakistan as an example of how

development aid can be ineffective. For over eight years, government and international donors

worked to improve Pakistan’s education system. After investing $8 billion in social projects, data

suggests that primary school enrollment actually declined slightly over the 1990s. From 1998-

1999 the total net primary enrollment dropped to 40 percent from its original 46 percent in 1990-

1991. Meanwhile, the size of private primary schools exponentially increased as a result of

parents' dissatisfaction with the quality of government-run schools (Easterly, 2001, p. 15). In

2000, a review of SAP was published and attributed the failed investment to: inadequate

resources, lack of trained staff, weak monitoring, and accountability (Easterly, 2001). The

failings of this program reflect earlier research detailing the inadequate and corrupt role of the

government in Pakistan’s education system. Lack of accountability and oversight is driving

parents who are financially able to, send their children to private schools, meanwhile those

utterly impoverished families are forced to enroll their children in a broken school system or no

school system at all.

To date, Pakistan’s education system has failed to inculcate its youth with the cognitive,

vocational, or life skills needed to assimilate into the global economy. This has resulted in a loss

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of output, fewer exports, and minimal growth in living standards. But as economist Amartya Sen,

states, there are countless benefits reaped from investments in education. ―Basic education is not

just an arrangement for training to develop skills (important as that is), it is also recognition of

the nature of the world, with its diversity and richness, and an appreciation of the importance of

freedom and reasoning as well as friendship. The need for that understanding—that vision— has

never been stronger‖ (Sen, 1999). Economists and numerous empirical studies alike have

established a strong correlation between education and economic development; now is the time

for Pakistan’s government to make that connection and act on it.

Response by International Organizations

Several organizations have formulated operational strategies to improve Pakistan’s

education system. The World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the United States’

Agency for International Development (UUSAID) have all financed education projects in

Pakistan. However, for purposes of this paper, the effectiveness and efficiency of Releasing

Confidence and Creativity (RCC) a program by Aga Khan Foundation will be evaluated.

USAID/Pakistan monetarily supported RCC, a program which worked on early childhood

education programs in Pakistan.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent bureau of

the U.S. government that provides economic development and humanitarian assistance

worldwide to support U.S. foreign policy goals. Since 2002, USAID's education division has

devoted over $682 million into reforming Pakistan's education system (USAID/Pakistan, 2009).

One of the projects that received funding from USAID/Pakistan was Releasing Confidence and

Creativity (RCC), a program managed by the Aga Khan Foundation through six local

nongovernmental organizations (Khan, 2005).

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In 1981, the Aga Khan Development Network was established with purposes of raising

funds for social development programs. The organization’s mission is to ―strengthen the capacity

of grassroots communities to solve their own problems and to promote opportunities that lead to

solutions in income, health, education and the sustainability of local institutions and the

environment‖ (Idealist Org., 2009). The Aga Khan’s grassroots approach aligns with William

Easterly’s idea of searchers that emphasize homegrown solutions. Aga Kahn also falls in line

with Muhammad Yunus’s grassroots microcredit plan of bringing change by empowering the

people. Structurally, The Aga Khan Foundation is headed by the Immat and is divided into three

branches: economic development, social development, and culture. For purposes of this paper,

the social development division will be studied, because it is through this division that the Aga

Khan Foundation was able to implement the RCC program with USAID/Pakistan.

Releasing Confidence and Creativity’s overall objective was to ―improve the quality of

learning and teaching during the early years in selected government primary schools and their

surrounding communities in Pakistan‖ (Rich-Orloff, Khan, & Juma, 2007, p. 13). The pilot

program was directed at girls aged 3 to 7 living in rural areas. The program reformed primary

schools in Pakistan through a number of creative and critical thinking activities including:

creative children’s games, group activities such as storytelling, poetry recitation, painting and

acting (Khan, 2005). These creative approaches to contrast to the traditional rote memorization

of government mandated textbooks described earlier. In addition to these interactive lesson

plans, traditional teacher-centered approaches were replaced by interactive teaching techniques

that emphasized student-centered learning. Families were also encouraged to promote these

interactive activities at home (Khan, 2005).

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An Aga Khan Foundation manger, Randy Hatfield, noted the program’s effectiveness,

saying, ―students involved in the program behaved in a totally different manner from what he

had otherwise observed during his 15 years in Pakistan‖ (Khan, 2005). Hatfield also expressed

how the program was well-received in these rural communities,

RCC has become so attractive to parents in some of the rural communities that in one

instance they raised $20,000 -- an enormous sum in rural Pakistan –to install the program

in their schools. Some even donated land and offered other services, while others

transferred their children from private schools to state-run schools with RCC programs,

he said (Khan, 2005).

The fact that parents are receiving the program so well and moving their children from private

schools to government-run public schools is a true testament to RCC’s effectiveness. The

program is also being expanded into the city of Chitral, perpetuating the notion of the program’s

success and effectiveness. Hatfield imagines the RCC program spreading to the other 160,000

primary schools in Pakistan. He says, ―An RCC program is a low-cost model with start-up costs

of only $2,000. To incorporate the RCC program in all the existing primary schools in Pakistan

would cost just over $3-million‖ (Khan, 2005). Overall, it seems as though Aga Khan

Foundation as an organization and even as a program supporter is effective. In fact, Charity

Navigator granted the organization with three out of four starts for organizational efficiency.

Although the organization seems to be efficient, expense reports and funding for RCC

were noticeably difficult to find. Neither USAID/Pakistan nor the Aga Khan Foundation released

the amount of money donated from different sponsors. Aga Khan’s website simply states,

―Funding sources include income from investments and grants from government, institutional

and private sector partners - as well as donations from individuals around the world‖ (Khan,

2005). However, the State Department released that the RCC program cost $4.5 million (Khan,

2005). Also, the cost-benefit analysis of the project was never released, calling the

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organization’s transparency into question. Despite, these shortcomings the organization seemed

to perform well with a clear line of leadership in the participating communities. Through the

partnership of the Aga Khan Foundation and USAID/Pakistan, 155 primary schools were

transformed and the lives of 5,000 children will never be the same as now they have a chance at

participating in the globalizing market.

Recommendations

Shortly after Pakistan gained its independence from India in 1947, its founding father

Mohammad Ali Jinnah proclaimed, ―The future of our state will and must greatly depend on the

type of education we give to our children‖ (Easterly, 2001, p. 17). I firmly believe that Pakistan’s

youth is an untapped resource waiting to be unleashed. Moreover, I believe that education is an

effective remedy to cure Pakistan’s economic and social ailments. In order to reap such benefits,

Pakistan’s education system needs to be overhauled. The elite and corrupt government officials

are at the heart of Pakistan’s education issues. Therefore, I am proposing four recommendations

for Pakistan’s education system: decentralize decision making, form a Parent-Teacher

Association (PTA), facilitate access to schools, and increase public expenditure on the education

system.

Currently, Pakistan’s education system is highly centralized in the hands of a few

government officials. Established earlier, one of the biggest complaints is against the

government-run primary schools which are often ineffectively run due to nepotism.

Decentralizing the decision making process enables each region with the opportunity to cater

their education system to reflect the needs of the particular district or village. Centralized

government systems overlook the specific needs of different regions. This approach reflects

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William Easterly’s idea of being a ―searcher.‖ Big plans are appealing, but a grassroots approach

enables sustainable educational development. Conversely, a concentrated system fails to provide

the needed resources to enact real change within the education system. In the United States, the

education system is somewhat decentralized, with each state or school district having jurisdiction

over the education system. A similar system is recommended for Pakistan, based on provinces,

districts, and finally villages. I am suggesting that a superintendent of the province be elected as

head of education. Next, a superintendent of each district within the province should be chosen

by the conglomeration of villages that make up the district. Additionally, a representative from

each village should be chosen to sit on the board of directors for the district’s education system.

Within each village, principals should be elected to take responsibility for the success of their

schools. This level of accountability will also help build a stronger, more responsive base of

teachers. As noted earlier, unqualified teachers have been a hindrance to the quality of primary

education provided. Ultimately, giving each head of school flexibility in his individual methods

helps ensure students receive the best education possible tailored for their particular village.

In addition to decentralizing those government officials in charge of dictating education

policies, the process of selecting textbooks should be reformed. As noted, the National Syllabus

and Provincial Textbook Boards have a monopoly over textbooks in the public school system.

Concentrating power in the hands of these boards limits students’ ability to ever receive an

education untainted by political propaganda. Instead, each district should have the option of

holding open bidding for all textbook companies to supply schoolbooks for the region. Putting

more power in the hands of the local people increases the possibility individuals will receive a

quality education appropriate for their social and economic environment.

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Another level of accountability should come from parent-teacher involvement. Therefore,

I suggest a PTA system be implemented. The RCC program funded by the Aga Khan Foundation

and USAID/Pakistan implemented a similar system to foster a more welcoming learning

environment at home. Opening these lines of communications allows teachers and parents to

build a mutual, trusting relationship. If parents trust the teachers, they will be more apt to keep

their children enrolled in schools. Higher retention rates mean more children will move on to

secondary and tertiary schools, thereby breaking the cycle of poverty, and increasing Pakistan’s

chances of participating in the global market.

Reforming the public schools mean nothing if students cannot reach them. It is incredibly

important that more schools be built in rural areas; however the board of directors for each

district must ensure that these schools be centrally built. Public transportation should be provided

to and from school to increase student retention rates. If a child does not have to walk 10 miles to

school, he or she will be more likely to stick with the educational programs. Fostering an

appreciation for education at a young age will help mold Pakistan’s youth into active participants

in its economic development.

Lastly, I would recommend increasing the public expenditure on education to at least 4

percent of GDP, per the recommendation of UNESCO. This money should be invested into

better curriculum, teacher incentives, and public school infrastructure. These funds can also be

used toward the recommended transportation system. Moreover, a scholarship system that grants

scholarships to high-achieving students to go to private schools would help cultivate productive

members of the workforce at a young age.

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Education is the vehicle which will drive Pakistan’s future. The question is whether a

rickshaw or a Mercedes will drive the country’s development. A quality education system will

provide Pakistan with the necessary tools to assimilate into the globalizing market place. Other

South Asian countries have taken a leap of faith and invested into the primary education system.

Now, it is Pakistan’s turn.

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