ISLAMABAD: A new official report has exposed severe dysfunctions in Pakistan’s education delivery system, revealing that all 134 districts, except Islamabad, are significantly underperforming across various indicators, including learning outcomes and public financing.
The Planning Commission’s District Education Performance Index Report 2023 highlights a critical human resource crisis in Pakistan, where individuals are entering the job market with insufficient education. The report suggests that the education crisis is even more pressing than the economic crisis.
According to the report, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) surpasses Punjab in education governance and management, while Punjab leads in infrastructure development. These results reflect the differing priorities of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
Launched by UK High Commissioner Jane Marriott and Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, the report shows that Pakistan’s performance indicators are largely red, indicating poor outcomes in education learning and public financing.
All districts are categorized as either medium—facing significant gaps—or low—struggling to perform effectively. None of the districts achieved a high performance rating.
The report reveals that the average score is 53.46, highlighting widespread issues within the education system. Medium-rated districts are struggling with substantial gaps, while low-rated districts are facing severe challenges. Alarmingly, 80% of out-of-school children have never attended school, and there is a widespread perception of poor quality in public education.
Rafiullah Kakar, Member Social Sector of the Planning Commission, noted that the learning domain index is particularly troubling, with the entire map showing red. Public financing is also inadequate, with up to 90% of the education budget allocated to salaries.
The report assesses education based on five indicators, with Infrastructure & Access scoring the highest at 58.95, indicating some progress in expanding educational opportunities.
Inclusion (Equity & Technology) follows, while Public Financing scores the lowest, underscoring the need for increased and better-targeted funding. Learning outcomes are persistently poor, and Governance & Management suffers due to teacher shortages and high bureaucratic turnover.
The districts with the weakest performance are in Balochistan and Sindh, with Balochistan having all its districts in the low performance category. Punjab shows better overall ratings but struggles with governance and public financing, while K-P excels in governance and public financing but performs poorly in learning outcomes.
The report emphasizes the need for targeted investments, improved governance, and equitable resource distribution to address the substantial disparities in education performance across districts and provinces. Pakistan’s public education spending remains low at 1.7% of GDP, significantly below the global average of 3.7%.
