LAHORE: Punjab has allocated Rs345bn for the education sector for 2017-18 which is 17.5pc of the total budget.

The allocation is Rs33bn more than the budgetfor the sector for the previous year.

An amount of Rs53.3bn has been allocated for the development programme of school education and Rs18bn for higher education.

The government has established the district education authorities (DEAs) and allocated Rs230bn forthe purpose. This is 66.6pc of the totaleducation budget.The authorities are aimed at improving the service delivery and taking decision-making to the local level.

For 2017-18, Rs53.3bn has been earmarked under the development programme of the School Education Department for completion of 352 ongoing and 758 new schemes. The major targets include provision of IT labs to 1,000 elementary, secondary and higher secondary schools having highest enrollment, provision of 3,000 additional classrooms to primary schools. The same amount will cover reconstruction of1,200 dangerous school buildings, provision of buildings for the shelterless and security in schools, teachers training programme, provision of 100pc missing facilities to all schools withspecial focus on south Punjab.

Eight new Daanish schools will also be established, four each for girls and boys.

Like the last three years, the government has made a resolve to increase school enrolment to 100pc but `no time frame` has been given in this regard.

For higher education, a sum of Rs44.6bn has been allocated. A sum of Rs18bn has been earmarked for completion of 80 ongoing and 26 new schemes. The government will establish 50 degree colleges, provide missing facilities to 27 colleges, distribute laptops among the talented students and establish community colleges and sub-campuses.

In special education, Rs1bn will be spent on 15 ongoing and 37 new schemes, two degree colleges in Rawalpindi and Faisalabad andother initiatives.

For literacy and non-formal basic education, a sum of Rs1.65bn has been allocated.

`It is yet to be seen how the DEAs will function; who will be included in the authority; how will the decisionmaking to distribute funds take place. Historically, new policies are launched with a lot of fanfare but they run into problems if not properly planned. It is to be seen if the local government representatives have a role in decision-making and if so to what level, or will they be controlled through the executive? More than two-thirds of the education budget is allocated for the districts which is not reflected in detail in the provincial budget. The only source of district education budget is the budget speech,` says the Alif Ailaan, a campaign for education in the country.