KARACHI, Sep 20 (NNI): Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, presiding over a review meeting on the ongoing repair and reconstruction of 4,162 out of 19,808 school buildings damaged by the 2022 floods, directed the School Education Department to not only expedite the work but also ensure that the schools are rebuilt to be flood resilient.
The meeting was held at the CM House and attended by Minister for Education Sardar Shah, Chief Secretary Asif Hyder Shah, Secretary Education Zahid Abbasi, Secretary Finance Fayaz Jatoi, and Secretary to CM Raheem Shaikh.
The CM directed the School Department to prioritize schools in the most affected areas and ensure that the quality of construction meets the required standards. “Education is our top priority, and we must rebuild these schools to provide a safe learning environment for our children,” he stated.
Murad Shah said that out of a total of 19,808 damaged schools, work on 4,162 has either been started or will be started shortly. However, he added that he still needs to arrange funds for the repair and reconstruction of the remaining 15,646 damaged schools.
Minister for Education Syed Sardar Shah, briefing the CM, said that out of 40,978 school buildings, 19,808 were damaged, including 7,503 fully and 12,305 partially, by the floods of 2022. In response to a question, the CM was informed that the total enrollment in the 40,978 schools comes to 5.22 million, but the number of children affected by the damage to the schools is 2.33 million.
The CM directed the School Education Department to ensure the proper running of classes so that students’ education is not affected. At this, the Minister for Education told the CM that under a stop-gap arrangement, classes were functioning properly.
The School Education Department informed the Chief Minister that out of 36,622 primary schools and 260 elementary schools, 17,255 primary and 1,192 elementary schools had sustained damage. Similarly, out of 1,654 secondary schools and 491 higher secondary schools, 928 secondary and 278 higher secondary schools were damaged.
When asked about the repair efforts, the CM was informed that 4,162 damaged schools had been taken up for repair and reconstruction with the support of various donor agencies and the federal government.
The Asian Development Bank has funded the repair of 1,026 schools, the Sindh government is repairing 538 schools through its ADP, the World Bank (through the federal government) is repairing four, the European Union is repairing 112, and JICA is repairing nine. Out of the Repair and Maintenance budget (for 2022-23 and 2024-25), 1,132 schools are being repaired by the federal government through PSDP, 833 by the World Bank through the SELECT program, and 377 by the Sindh Secondary Education Improvement Project (SSEIP). The total cost for the repair and reconstruction of 4,162 schools comes to Rs167,080.78 million.
It was pointed out that out of the Repair and Maintenance budget for 2022-23, 744 schools were being repaired. These include 171 in the Hyderabad division, 132 in Larkana, 137 in Mirpurkhas, 102 in Shaheed Benazirabad, 152 in Sukkur, and 50 in Karachi, at a total cost of Rs3,075.858 million.
Mr. Shah, discussing the funding allocations, timelines, and measures to prevent future infrastructure damage from heavy rains and floods, directed the School Education Department to ensure the reconstruction and repair of schools by 2025-26.
“I want you [School Education Department] to accelerate the restoration process so that educational institutions can resume full operations as soon as possible because prolonged stop-gap arrangements would affect educational activities,” the CM concluded. NNI
