Punjab govt, Barbar sign accord on education reforms

LAHORE:The Punjab government has signed an agreement of cooperation with Sir Michael Barbar, a world-renowned expert on reforms in different sectors, including education here on Sunday.

Sir Michael Barbar has worked for the delivery unit of the British Prime Minister Tony Blair in more than fifty countries of the world for reforms in the government sector.

A delegation headed by Sir Michael Barbar met with Punjab’s Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb. The senior minister thanked Sir Michael Barbar for his past cooperation and technical assistance in other fields, including education. The senior minister briefed the delegation on the agenda of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz for basic reforms in the governance system, including education, youth skills, and environment.

A mega project has been launched to ensure education of every boy and girl in the entire province, Marriyum Aurangzeb said, adding the education system was being reformed to ensure the provision of all facilities and teachers in schools.

The minister told the delegation that for the first time, a programme of providing food and milk for children in government schools has been started with Rs20 billion in the most backward districts.

She maintained that the Punjab government was starting the best world-class education system 'Early Year Education System' in the first years of children. She said students of 10 universities of Punjab will be given international scholarships. She said Maryam Nawaz has introduced modern technology and methods in agriculture, farmers were given quality seeds, fertilizers and machinery including tractors through credit cards. Marriyum Aurangzeb said the government was initiating a programme for skill development. She added the implementation of a wide programme for the promotion of information technology, including IT City Lahore, has also started while the government will start delivering government services to homes through Digital Punjab Programme.

Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz was overhauling the entire health system, millions of patients have been treated at the Clinic on Wells and Field Hospital, Marriyum Aurangzeb said. Along with the cities, modern mother and child treatment facilities, free medicines and modern diagnosis and treatment machinery have also been provided in the villages, Maryam Aurangzeb maintained.

The CM has linked the performance of ministries and departments to the scorecard developed using IT, Maryam Aurangzeb said and added that progress on performance targets was monitored by Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz herself.

The senior minister said regarding the vaccination and treatment of measles, polio and other epidemic diseases, work was going on at the grass-root level. She maintained that the government and the private sector were working on a war-footing on the multi-sectoral smog action plan to eliminate air pollution and smog. The delegation appreciated CM’s public services, vision of fundamental change in the system and plans for use of IT.