Oversight body formed for foreign-funded education projects, SHC told

The Sindh High Court (SHC) was informed by the education department on Tuesday that the provincial government has constituted a high-powered oversight committee, chaired by the chief secretary, to monitor all ongoing and future foreign-funded projects.

Filing a statement with the court, the education secretary said the committee would ensure the progress of all foreign-funded projects under the school education department.

He submitted that the committee would review the reports of the project steering committee regarding the proper utilisation of funds in accordance with the timelines, the donor guidelines and the relevant rules, besides evaluating the performance of the projects based on key performance indicators.

He also submitted that the committee would ensure transparency in the process, timely execution, implementation, efficient utilisation of funds, and monitoring and internal audit of the projects to achieve the objectives effectively.

After taking the statement on record, an SHC division bench headed by Justice Salahuddin Panhwar directed the CS to submit reports to the court on a monthly basis. The bench directed the office to fix the matter as per the roster, saying that it would not be treated as part-heard.

The court had earlier directed the government to constitute a high-level committee to monitor the progress of the education department’s projects that were being funded by foreign donors, and to also apprise the foreign donors as regards the progress of such projects. The direction came on a petition with regard to the failure of the authorities concerned to supply textbooks to students enrolled at government schools in the province.