Pakistan has more than 26 million out of school children, according to the Girls Education Statistics and Trends Report 2023-24 (GESTR). Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui released the report in Islamabad.
The report estimates that 25.37 million children aged 5 to 16 are out of school, including 13.41 million girls and 11.96 million boys. It places the overall number of out of school children at 26.2 million nationwide.
Punjab accounts for 9.6 million out of school children, followed by Sindh with 7.82 million, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa with 4.92 million and Balochistan with 2.94 million. Islamabad has 90,000 children out of school.
Enrollment declines sharply at each successive stage of education. While 20.815 million children enroll at primary level, only 2.825 million reach intermediate level and 718,000 enter university degree programs.
The report notes improvements in school infrastructure, with 96 percent of schools operating in permanent buildings and 82 percent providing drinking water. However, only 19 percent of schools have digital devices and 23 percent offer accessibility ramps.
Education’s share in the national budget has fallen from 13 percent to 11 percent. Of that allocation, 94 percent goes toward salaries, significantly limiting development spending and expansion capacity.
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