Every year, March 8 marks International Women’s Day, a time to celebrate the achievements of women and advocate for gender equality worldwide. This year’s theme, “For All Women and Girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment,” highlights the urgent need to ensure that every woman and girl – regardless of background, identity, or circumstances – has access to […]
Beyond algorithms
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into education is no longer a vision of the future; it is our present reality. As the United Nations observes this year’s International Day of Education under the theme “AI and Education: Human Agency in an Automated World,” the global community is prompted to reflect on the profound implications […]
Fading folio, rising screens – II
The ASER 2023 report findings further indicate that the highest level of learning for Urdu in the survey is story reading. According to it, 18 percent of children, who have dropped out of schools in Balochistan, can read stories in Urdu which is closely followed by Punjab and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Sentence reading is […]
Fading Folio, Rising Screens – I
April 23rd is a symbolic date in world literature. It is the date on which several prominent authors, William Shakespeare, Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, and Miguel de Cervantes died. This date deems a natural choice for UNESCO to declare as World Book and Copyright Day to pay a worldwide tribute to books and authors […]
SDGs 2030: Crossing the Halfway Mark (Part II)
The pandemic has had devastating impacts on learning. Learning losses due to COVID-related school closures were documented in four in every five of the 104 countries studied. A recent Progress in International Reading Literacy Study assessment revealed declines in 21 out of 32 countries with comparable data from 2016–2021, and parents reported that two-thirds of […]
SDGs 2030: Crossing the Halfway Mark (Part I)
In August 2015, the UN Inter-Governmental negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) process came to fruition with consensus on the outcome document, titled ‘Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Global Action’. Framed as 17 SDG goals with 169 outcome-based targets, the framework is embraced by 190+ countries including […]
International Day of Education & Climate Change
Education is a basic human right, a public good, and a public responsibility. The UN General Assembly proclaimed January 24 as the day of education. In this regard, the fifth international day of education is being observed on January 24, 2023, under the theme “To invest in people, prioritize education.” Building on the global momentum […]
Human Resource Development (Part II)
In the previous part of this OpEd series, the German educational structure has been explored as a vanguard of a successfully developed economy. In this piece, the educational paradigm of China, which represents a successful human resource development model among the newly industrialised developing economies, is dissected. Chinese decision-makers have also put technical education and […]
Human Resource Development (Part I)
Human Resource Development (HRD) lays the foundation of a developed and progressive society. It is an important factor in economic growth and manpower development is the cornerstone of the development process. Human Resource Development, especially through Education and Technical and Vocational Training, can determine the future of the country. A significant form of human capital […]
Achievement of SDGs: Sindh, Balochistan and KP (Part II)
In 2020, the Government of Sindh launched its own SDGs framework to serve as a roadmap for the achievement of SDGs. Initially, the province took stock of available resources and prioritized SDGs based on existing development issues and challenges, value for money and magnitude of impact and consultations with stakeholders. SDGs 2, 3, 4, 6, […]