'Educating girls a key to overcome social problems'

Educating girls is a key to build economy and overcome social problems, as Pakistan's future is bleak without girls' education. This was the crux of a conference entitled; "Empowerment through girls education in contemporary Muslim societies", organised by Oxfam in collaboration with Pakistan Coalition for Education (PCE) here on Tuesday.
On the occasion, Pakistani campaigners, political figures, national civil society organisations and international NGOs said that the future of the country depended on its ability to deliver education to the country's children, particularly girls. The passing of the 18th amendment has changed the dynamics of the education sector in Pakistan. Education is no longer a privilege but a fundamental right for all children in Pakistan. Neva Khan, Oxfam's country director for Pakistan outlined the importance of addressing education in Pakistan.
Peer Mazhar-ul-Haq Education Minister of the Sindh said that although there had been some achievements, much still needed to be done. "It's high time the government prioritised education and allotted more funds to it," he said. He further said that provincial bodies and civil society needed to be empowered to raise the level of education services.
"We should start campaigns at the grass roots level in rural areas in particular to improve access and address barriers to education for girls, he added. Poet and writer Harris Khalique addressed the issue of religious extremism, which, he said, could be countered by empowering women through education. "What is happening in Muslim societies is a grave disservice to Islam," he said.
Former head of Pakistan's Council of Islamic Ideology, Dr Khalid Masud said education was seen as a "transfer of information" rather than a process of "intellectual development". To change this approach, he said the public needed to be empowered so that political figures were forced to justify and defend their policies to the public.