Islamabad: The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (E&SED), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) signed a Memorandum of Understanding to launch a scholarship program for adolescent girls in the merged districts. (MD) KP. Held at Marriot Hotel, the event was at the invitation of Secretary, Education Department, Mr. Masood Ahmed and WFP Pakistan Representative and Director, Ms. Coco Ushiyama.
The Girls’ Scholarship Program aims to improve girls’ access to and retention in school, particularly in higher grades where dropout rates are high, by providing income support to families of teenage girls. During the three years of the program, approximately 30,000 girls in grades 6-12 in more than 500 government girls’ middle and high schools will receive PKR 1,000 per month. Covering all seven counties and subdivisions in the merged counties, this 3-year program costs $4.4 million, an average of $1.1 million annually.
Officially launching the programme, the Education Secretary said: “This intervention lays the foundation stone for our future, especially for disadvantaged adolescent girls in MD. In today’s society, access to quality education is essential for our successful future”. He further added that the KP government places a high priority on ensuring access to education for all out-of-school children. There are currently over 1 million children between the ages of 5 and 16 who are not enrolled in school in MD. A staggering 67 percent of the population in MD is unable to read or write, pointing to low education indicators across the MD region. “
WFP Pakistan Representative and Director Coco Ushiyama emphasized the importance of education: “The profound impact of girls’ education is encapsulated in the saying, ‘Educate a girl and you educate a nation’. When women and girls gain better access to education, information, resources, services and economic opportunities, the ripple effect is far-reaching. Evidence confirms that this empowerment also leads to increased food security and better nutrition for women and girls, their families and communities, which lays the foundation for a prosperous society.”
The scholarship program for girls builds on decades of partnership between the Ministry of Education, KP and WFP. Most recently, in 2021, in support of the government’s response to COVID-19, WFP piloted a cash-based scholarship program in merged districts, reaching about 21,000 girls in 280 schools. An impact assessment of this pilot found a significant 14 percent increase in enrollment and a 96 percent improvement in attendance.
The Adolescent Girls Program will be implemented under the overall supervision of E&SED with technical support from WFP in cash transfers, data collection, profiling and skill enhancement for the Education Department staff involved in the training programme.
Today’s event is part of WFP Pakistan’s series of school-based interventions to support human capital development. School-based programs are one of the world’s most extensive social safety nets that can help maximize the return on investment in education by facilitating access to school and improving children’s nutritional status, health, and cognitive development.
