Multi stakeholder dialogue Activity 2-12 held on 10th November at Buner press club. The activity was attended by District Naib Nazim Mr. Yousuf Ali Khan who presided over the meeting and Mr. Adalat Khan (Assistant Commissioner Gagra) on behalf of the Deputy Commissioner Buner was the Chief Guest. The dialogue was attended by representatives of civil society organizations, President District Bar Association, political & social activists. District Education Department was represented by Mr. Shiraz Khan, Assistant District Education Officer of Buner. Mr. Fazal Ghani (General Secretary of ADF Buner) presented the findings of a survey conducted in 2 Union councils (Amazai & Nagrai).
The key findings were:
Lack of basic facilities
Lack of clean drinking water
Shortage of rooms
Lack of teachers
Lack of bathrooms
Lack of play grounds
The survey was conducted in 21 schools in the above mentioned union councils. A detailed discussion was held on education and ways & means to improve educational conditions. Mr. Shiraz Khan said that there is a shortage of 1000 teachers in the schools of District Buner. Also, the parent teacher councils (PTCs) are not functional in District Buner.
The participants demanded from the government:
Quality of education should be improved.
For improvement of quality of education and literacy ratio, a joint struggle is required from every section of the society.
Women should be appointed in the schools nearest to their households.
Shortage of teachers should be addressed immediately.
Issues faced by the teachers should be taken care of by the appropriate authorities.
Basic facilities like washrooms and clean drinking water should be ensured in the schools.
Playgrounds should be provided for the physical grooming of the children.
Immediate steps should be taken to appoint subject specialists in higher secondary schools.
Balanced and based on justice educational system should be ensured and the right of every citizen to education should be safeguarded.
Syllabus should address contemporary needs.
On service training should be made compulsory.
Monitoring system based on rewards and punishment should be developed.
Syllabus should be free of every kind of discrimination.
Conclusion It was agreed that AVF members would become members of PTCs and make efforts to make those PTCs functional. Any kind of mismanagement of funds and lacunas would be reported to the education department. The department would likewise address those issues as soon as possible.
