Rehabilitating Closed Schools: A Daunting Challenge for Pakistan

There are 6034 non-operational schools in Pakistan\u27s southern province of Sindh further complicating the work of the donor agencies; more than half of these non-operational schools (3843) only exist on papers. These shadow schools exist only to usurp international aid earmarked for education. Our research shows that proximity to the population; unavailability of teachers; and lack of infrastructure are some of the fundamental causes driving the closure of more than thirteen percent of schools. Our position is that a large number of these schools can be rehabilitated but that requires a three-phased plan. If implemented, proposed plan would enhance transparency for the international donors, augment direct involvement of local communities, and restore a substantial number of schools to provide primary education to more than 150,000 boys and girls

Role of Private Sector in HIgher Education of Pakistan: Predicaments and Insights

The nationalization of industry and education in the early 1970s resulted in the deterioration of private sector with minimal investment in this field. This continued into late 90s with Pakistan recording comparatively low public spending on education as a percentage of GDP . Thus the government of Pakistan, in an effort to enhance intellectual capital and enrollments, established the Higher Education Commission (HEC) assigned to evaluate, improve and promote the higher education and research culture in both public and private sectors in Pakistan. Since its establishment in 2002, the HEC has “undertaken a systematic process of implementation of the five-year agenda for reform outlined in the HEC Medium Term Development Framework (MTDF) . Thus, with the inception of HEC, the number of private sector universities has surged from 25 (2001) to 53 (2010) and the private sector enrolments in higher education institutions increased from 43,873 a 15.8% of the total enrolment of 276,274 (2001) to 115,369 a 14% of the total enrolment which is 803,507(2009) . The contribution of private sector has been criticized for not being aligned with the national priority paradigm or core strategic aims proposed by HEC in its Medium Term Development Framework 2005-2010 (MTDF). The MTDF stressed upon the importance of improving access to education; promoting excellence in learning and research; faculty development; and industrial linkages relevant to the economy . Although HEC has granted charter to the private sector as “general institutes”, the focus of autonomous private sector institutions has remained on demand-led subjects producing graduates specifically in the fields of management sciences, medical, engineering and information technology. Also the expansion in the institutional capacity of private educational sector may not guarantee employability. Critics of private sector have always perceived its efforts delinked from government’s intention of enhancing the quality of research and growth in pure/basic disciplines of science, social sciences and humanities. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to analyze the strategic targets envisaged in the HEC Policy and Educational Reforms in Pakistan; to appreciate the participation of private sector institutions towards improving the access to higher education; to objectively evaluate its role and initiatives in the development of human capital suitable for national and international socio-economic milieu; and also to examine the contribution of private sector in promoting research culture. The paper concludes that HEC needs to revisit its strategies set out in the MTDF and introduce new guidelines for private sector in higher education

Free Textbook Distribution Process in Sindh, Pakistan: A Study of Stakeholders Perceptions

Placed amongst the lower middle income countries (The World Bank 2010), a large segment of the population of Pakistan is unable to afford the expenses on basic amenities including education. In year 2003, the Government of Sindh, initiated a free textbooks scheme. This study investigates the transparency and efficiency of distribution process; examines the challenges and opportunities of the procurement and delivery process; and assesses the perceptions and feedback of the stakeholders. The study was conducted in all the districts of Sindh Province. The data were collected through analysis of documents, field survey, focus group discussions and interviews. The study concluded that the scheme was marred by logistic and resource constraints, lack of coordination, weak management, capacity issues of functionaries, ineffective monitoring mechanism, institutional corruption, and intervention‘s sustainability. The paper recommends that the public education delivery mechanism needs to be revisited and updated

INVESTIGATING ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTION AMONG THE YOUTH OF KARACHI: EVIDENCE FROM PARTIAL LEAST SQUARE-STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELLING : Salman Ahmed Khatani, Dr. Khalid Mahmood Iraqi, Dr. Shams Hamid, Ariba Javed Iqbal

In this interconnected and interdependent world, entrepreneurship is an important driving factor for a person's success and the sustainable socioeconomic growth of any country's economy. The purpose of this research paper is to investigate and identify the perspective and behavior of youth towards entrepreneurial intention with the help of the Smart PLS_SEM Model technique to explore the main factors that impact entrepreneurial intention. The data sample size of 300 respondents has been collected from different university students studying, doing a job, and doing business. The study’s independent variables are attitude towards entrepreneurship, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, pro-activeness, risk-taking, and innovativeness, which are being focused on for PLS-SEM Based modeling to obtain insight into the youth’s intentions Karachi. All the variables show statistically significant results on entrepreneurial intention. Attitude towards entrepreneurship, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, pro-activeness, risk-taking and innovativeness are the significant predictors of youth entrepreneurial intention