Pakistan Institute of Education has released a report on the number of out-of-school children for the year 2023-2024 across Pakistan with Punjab sits on the top of the list.
According to the report, Punjab province led the list as the number of out-of-school children in the province between the ages of five and 16 is 9.6 million.
The number of out-of-school girls is 4.83 million while the number of boys is 4.77 million.
The number of out-of-school children in Sindh is 7.82 million.
The number of out-of-school children in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is 4.92 million.
The number of out-of-school children in Balochistan is 2.94 million while 0.09 million children are out of school in Islamabad.
In his reaction, Federal Education Minister Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui maintained that the statistics have worsened after the 18th Amendment was used to amass powers around rulers rather dissolving authority to the lowest level. “This should be reviewed again,” he added.
2,735 more govt schools to be outsourced
The Government of Punjab has decided to outsource an additional 2,735 public schools to NGOs and private operators through the Punjab Education Foundation (PEF).
The provincial government said the move aims to improve the quality of education and address the issue of out-of-school children.
According to officials, private individuals and organisations will operate the schools in various districts. The School Education Department has invited applications from the private sector, with the deadline set for March 31. Selected operators are expected to take charge of the 2,735 schools in April.
Media reports indicate that the Punjab government plans to outsource more than 14,000 government schools in two phases, which could result in the removal of over 40,000 teaching posts.
Last year, the government completed the first phase of the outsourcing process, handing over more than 11,000 schools to private operators. The development was disclosed during a meeting chaired by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz in Lahore on May 4, 2025. Meanwhile, chief of Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman criticised the provincial government’s spending priorities.