Daily Times

Sir: According to the Annual Status of Education’s Survey, about 34.1 percent of children between the ages of one and sixteen are not enrolled in schools in Balochistan, which is largely considered Pakistan’s most neglected province. It has also been found that out of the children who are enrolled in pre-primary school, 77.7 percent do not go on to elementary school. This is very worrisome. Top these statistics off with the fact that the survey also reports how most children have very poor language and learning skills and we can look forward to a generation that will be even more illiterate than the last. Balochistan has become an afterthought for Pakistan, and its citizens are suffering. There is dire need for quality education, adequate school campuses and policies that will ensure all children go to school, at least until they complete their middle years education. While most promises to Balochistan have never been kept, maybe we should start here.

ZORAIZ SHAH

Karachi