Sindh govt to establish 300 digital micro-schools to enroll out of school children

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has instructed the Sindh Education Foundation (SEF) to establish 300 digital ‘micro-schools’ as part of a new initiative aimed at enrolling 300,000 out-of-school children and employing over 600 female learning facilitators. He has also approved a budget of Rs800 million to support this project.

These directives were issued during an SEF board meeting, which was attended by several government officials, including the Education Minister, Chief Secretary, Planning and Development Chairman, School Education Secretary, Finance Secretary, SEF Managing Director, and other board members.

During the meeting, the Chief Minister approved the expansion of the Accelerated Digital Learning Programme (ADLP) in collaboration with the Teach the World Foundation. The second phase of the ADLP will span three years.

The initial ADLP pilot, which received approval from the Board of Governors and Cabinet in 2023, had a budget allocation of Rs710 million, supporting approximately 12,500 learners.

CM Shah directed SEF Managing Director Kazi Kabir to enroll 300,000 out-of-school children by 2025 through the establishment of 300 digital micro-schools. He also instructed the SEF to hire over 600 female learning facilitators for this initiative.

Kabir informed the Chief Minister that the per-student cost for the next phase of the ADLP would be Rs2,200. Based on this projection, the Chief Minister approved a budget of Rs800 million for the SEF.

During the meeting, officials also provided updates on the SEF’s current operations. The SEF currently oversees the education of one million students across 2,734 schools, 35 public schools, 223 learning centers, and 125 micro-schools. Additionally, 4,452 students are receiving scholarships, with 804 scholarship recipients having already graduated.

The SEF operates in six regions and 23 districts, with plans to launch 1,000 digital classrooms and implement skill development programs by 2025-26 to equip graduates with employable skills.

The Chief Minister praised the SEF for revitalizing six previously non-functional public schools that lacked proper facilities. However, he noted that the current expenditure of Rs16,000 per student per month, supported by an annual budget of Rs15,955 million, is insufficient. He instructed the Finance Secretary to review the budget and propose solutions to address any shortfall.

The Chief Minister was also informed that an independent third party has been engaged to audit the SEF’s accounts for the fiscal years 2021-22 to 2023-24.

Finally, the SEF Managing Director reported that the SEF Endowment Fund currently stands at Rs4,068.893 million, with Rs1,218.893 million generated so far, and an additional profit of Rs52.256 million earned from the invested gratuity fund.