Karachi, The Punjab government has pledged full support to the Sindh-based non-profit Green Crescent Trust (GCT) in its efforts to expand educational services to Punjab, focusing on children from deprived and rural areas. This commitment was expressed by Punjab Health Minister, Prof Dr. Javed Akram, during a ceremony organized by GCT on the eve of International Day of Education.
According to Green Crescent Trust, the event saw significant backing from prominent Lahore-based businessmen and industrialists for GCT’s initiative to enroll 100,000 out-of-school children in Sindh by building 250 schools in the province’s backward and remote areas. Prof Dr. Javed Akram lauded GCT’s accomplishments in establishing 166 charitable schools in underprivileged areas of Sindh over its 29-year history, benefiting 31,800 children from deprived families.
The Punjab Health Minister acknowledged GCT’s vital role in sharing the state’s responsibility to provide quality education to every child in the country, regardless of their status and location. He highlighted GCT’s recent expansion beyond Sindh, with the establishment of a charitable school in the Winder area of Hub district, Balochistan. Dr. Akram encouraged further educational efforts in Balochistan and invited GCT to extend its philanthropic work to Punjab, assuring full government support in terms of land, funding, and trained teachers.
Dr. Akram affirmed the Punjab School Education Department’s commitment to collaborate with sincere charities and NGOs in educating children in remote and under-developed parts of Punjab. He emphasized the importance of education in breaking the cycle of poverty for underprivileged families. Additionally, Dr. Shehla Javed Akram, an accomplished woman entrepreneur and the wife of the Punjab Health Minister, urged educational charities to focus on educating girls from deserving families to advance women’s empowerment.
Balochistan Health Minister, Dr. Amir Muhammad Jogezai, attending as a guest of honour, emphasized the critical role of NGOs in providing essential services in remote Balochistan areas. He commended GCT for its first school in the province and assured the Balochistan government’s support for further educational initiatives.
GCT CEO, Zahid Saeed, expressed gratitude for the business community’s ongoing support in enrolling out-of-school children in Sindh. He called for collaboration among NGOs, provincial governments, and the private sector to address the challenges faced by millions of out-of-school children in Pakistan. Saeed criticized the inadequacy of the state-run schooling system despite substantial government expenditure and advocated for partnerships to improve the situation.