LAHORE: A delegation of British Council, led by its Chief Executive Ciaran Devane, on Thursday met Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif and agreed to promote ongoing cooperation with Punjab in education sector.
Talking to the delegation, the Chief Minister said the Punjab government had taken revolutionary steps for the promotion of education during the last six years, adding that quality education was the right of every child which was being ensured by the government.
He said the Provincial Higher Education Commission had been set up for the promotion of higher education. He said the Punjab School Reforms Roadmap Programme was being successfully implemented in the province with the cooperation of British Department for International Development (DFID) and it was yielding positive results.
He said education was the most effective weapon against terrorism and extremism.
Shahbaz Sharif said that Skill Development Programme was also being implemented successfully in Punjab with the cooperation of DFID and thousands of youth had been imparted various skills who were being provided respectable job opportunities, adding the Punjab government was making investment in the youth for their empowerment.
The Chief Minister further said more than one million boys and girls had been given admission in schools through the voucher scheme of Punjab Education Foundation (PEF), adding that establishment of Punjab Educational Endowment Fund (PEEF) was another historic step of the provincial government. He said total volume of PEEF had reached Rs 12 billion and thousands of talented poor students had been given educational scholarships from this fund enabling them to study at prestigious educational institutions.
He said that IT labs have been set up in 4200 high schools while tens of thousands of laptops worth billions of rupees had been distributed among talented boy and girl students during the last few years. He said after universities and colleges, students of schools and religious seminaries were also being given laptops.
Shahbaz Sharif said quality educational institutions like Daanish Schools were being set up in backward areas of the province for providing academic facilities to low-income segments of the society, adding that even better education than Atchison and Grammar schools was being given to students in Daanish Schools.
He said digital libraries were being set up in the province while a state-of-the-art Knowledge Park was being established in Lahore. He said first kidney and liver institute of the country would also be set up in the Knowledge Park for which 50 acre of land had been allocated.
He said this project would also be executed with speed and transparency like the other projects of the provincial government.
The Chief Minister said the Health Reforms Roadmap Programme had also been started in the province with the cooperation of DFID. He said in order to provide modern and economical transport facilities to the masses, metro bus project had been completed within a very short period and more than 150,000 people travel by metro buses daily.
Shahbaz Sharif said cooperation with British Council in educational programmes would be continued in future as well.
The members of the British Council delegation while speaking on the occasion said Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif was taking commendable measures for the uplift of education, health and other social sectors and they were pleased to see the pace of development in Punjab.
They said effective steps taken by the Chief Minister reflected his dynamic leadership and cooperation with Punjab government in education sector would be further promoted.
The delegation included Regional Director for South Asia Stephen Roman, Director Pakistan Peter Upton, Director Punjab Kevin Mcqueen and Project Manager Muhammad Ali. Provincial Minister for Education Rana Mashhood Ahmed Khan, Secretary Higher Education, Chairman Provincial Higher Education Commission and concerned authorities were present on the occasion.
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