The Sindh Education Foundation (SEF) has achieved a major milestone by enrolling one million students across the province. Sindh Minister for Education and Vice Chairman of the SEF Board of Governors, Syed Sardar Ali Shah, termed the achievement “remarkable” and congratulated the entire SEF team on this success.
The Minister stated that SEF has played a vital role in preventing thousands of children from dropping out of school and in expanding access to education in underserved areas. He directed SEF partner organizations to ensure that at least 40 percent of the subsidy amount is allocated to teachers’ salaries, in order to further improve the quality of education. He also announced that under the Sindh School Education Scholarship Program (SSESP), at least 50 percent of scholarships will be reserved for girls, reinforcing the government’s commitment to gender equity in education.
Presiding over a meeting held after his visit to the SEF Head Office in Karachi, the Minister emphasized that all available resources would be utilized to implement Sindh’s education policy initiatives. He issued directives to strengthen technology-based monitoring, enhance support for female students, and further reinforce the quality assurance mechanism. On the occasion, Managing Director SEF, Gahanwer Ali Laghari, briefed the Minister on the Foundation’s ongoing and upcoming initiatives. He highlighted the strengthened Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system, noting an increase in field visits and a focused approach toward school-level improvement. He also informed the Minister about the “Wellness Survey” conducted for meritorious students enrolled under the SSESP.
In a unique initiative, the Minister connected via video link with a cluster-based teacher training session in a remote area of Larkana, where SEF is providing 100 percent teacher training in Early Learning and Foundational Learning in line with government policy. The Minister interacted directly with teachers, reviewed the quality of training, and received firsthand feedback from participants. While sharing his observations on SEF’s presentation, the Minister directed that the Monitoring and Evaluation system be fully automated using advanced technologies such as facial recognition, biometrics, and geo-fencing/geo-tagging, to enhance transparency and efficiency. Expressing concern for student well-being, he instructed SEF to develop Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for free eye check-ups for students, to be provided through partner institutions.
The Minister noted that more than 200 Union Councils across Sindh lack post-primary education facilities and suggested that these areas be prioritized in the establishment of new schools. He further stated that he would recommend an increase in SEF’s budget in the upcoming fiscal year. Concluding his remarks, the Minister proposed the introduction of a peer-review mechanism among partner schools, under which teachers from one school would assess another. According to him, this approach would promote constructive feedback, continuous improvement, and healthy competition among schools.