Abstract: This NORRAG Highlights features guest author Zain ul Abidin, a Policy Researcher at Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi Center of Education and Consciousness. Abidin describes the strong presence and role of non-state actors in education in the global south, particularly in South Asia. Amidst the global pandemic, survival of many non-state schools is at risk. Is there potential to develop a safety net which can absorb the significant learning losses that might occur due to the absence of non-state actors in times of COVID-19?

Despite the prevalence of large-scale education systems spearheaded by the state, non-state actors in education have emerged as a large and growing sector in low- and middle-income countries over the past two decades. Today, as many as 30% of children globally are educated outside of the public school system (UNESCO Institute for Statistics). In 2018, 42% of pre-primary, 18% of primary, and 26% of secondary students globally were enrolled in non-state sec...

 COVID-19 context

Pakistan has the second largest number of out-of-school girls after Nigeria3 . The COVID-19 pandemic has further worsened the status of girls’ education in the country, leaving millions of girls at the risk of never returning to school and losing half of their total years of education. After this period of pandemic, national and provincial statistics in Pakistan, as in most other countries, are likely to report a sharp increase in the number of school dropouts by adolescent girls due to early and forced marriages, domestic labour, lack of safety measures for girls in schools and/or strains on household disposable incomes due to job losses.

Programme response to the gender-related impacts of COVID-19 on education

Phase 2.0 of the A3G programme was scheduled to launch just as the COVID-19 outbreak happened. In response, the programme activities were shifted to a home-based model which began with a smallscale survey. This was used to...

Pakistan, home to 210 million people, is a paradox of conflicting realities. It has crossed global milestones, with Malala Yousufzai, the youngest girl at age 17, becoming a Nobel Peace Prize winner for championing girls’ education. Yet, Pakistan also has the second largest number of girls out-of-school in the world after Nigeria. In South Asia, it is only second to Afghanistan for the lowest gender and education metrics. There is clearly a dilemma that needs urgent attention, to break new grounds amidst profound gaps in educational achievements that are a trigger for other entitlements for human well-being. Low indicators for girls’ education are reflected in the overall low metrics for women’s life expectancy (68.2 years), health (MMR: 178/1000) and women’s labour force participation (24%) in Pakistan (Gender MIS Punjab Commission on the Status of Women 2018).

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Several months after it first hit globally, governments and experts across the world have now finally begun to register the long-term consequences of the COVID-19 crisis. Education for children has emerged as a major casualty, particularly in the Global South where many countries were already struggling with learning crises. The school closures, limited access to online learning, and already constrained education systems have coalesced together to bring about an adverse situation. The potential learning losses suffered by children, both temporally and economically, are significant.

Pakistan blogThe search is on to find an immediate solution for such an unprecedented crisis. Considering the time and resource constraints, a good solution has to fulfill a certain set of criteria. Essentially, it has to be 1) low-cost, 2) scalable, 3) easily available, 4) targeted specifically at the issue of learning losses, and 5) workable. In this regard, accelerated learning h...

39pc of youth are employed, 57pc are neither working nor seeking jobs, and only 4pc are unemployed and actively looking for work

At this moment, Pakistan possesses the largest generation of youth in its history. Close to 64 per cent of the country’s population is younger than 30, while 29 per cent are aged 15-29 (Pakistan National Human Development Report, 2017). This proportion is forecasted to continue increasing until at least 2050, leading to what is termed as Pakistan’s youth bulge, making Pakistan one of the youngest countries in the world and second youngest in the South Asia after Afghanistan and thereby ideally situated to benefit from a potent demographic dividend.

Nevertheless, there are constraints in reaping this demographic dividend, particularly with respect to gender. For instance, as the youth gender inequality index points out, as many as 29 per cent of the young people are illiterate and only 6 per cent have more than 12 years of educat...

Over the recent past, reform efforts and interventions in education sector have been underway across the country and particularly in Punjab. These interventions have achieved some progress in terms of education indicators but there is still a long way to go when it comes to fulfilling the constitutionally guaranteed Right to Education. Within the context of Pakistan’s commitments to the Sustainable Development Goals, we appraise one such education intervention undergoing in South Punjab which addresses three questions i.e. What is the specific problem the intervention seeks to address? what are the root causes of the problem? and how is the intervention directly addressing these root causes?

The Siyani Sahelian (SS) intervention is a DFID-funded second-chance girls education program currently running in the three districts of South Punjab including Bahawalpur, Muzaffargarh and Rahim Yar Khan.

It is designed to mainstream and empower 22000+ out-of-school girls...

  SAMRA stretches her arms, as do the other schoolgirls during their morning assembly energiser activity. They jump, twist and clap. In several other schools in Muzaffargarh and Rahim Yar Khan, girls like Samra prepare interactive role-playing activities, plays and presentations regularly each morning. The administration and teachers think that this helps to refresh students’ minds and makes learning activities more engaging. Their belief in employing unique pedagogical tools is paying off.

"My brother was so angry with my 'bhabi' advocating for my education that he beat her right in front of me"

From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This year’s theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images.

My elder brother and I lost our mother a long time ago. After some time of her passing, our father got remarried and my brother moved out. My step-m...

 "My parents feared a broken-engagement would make me undesirable for marriage and would bring dishonor to the family"

From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This year’s theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images.

I was a regular school-going girl growing up, wearing my hair in neat pigtails that my sister would make every morning. Little did I...

From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This year’s theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images. 

Yasmin Sadiq, a 15 year old girl, lives in Mosa Colony, Bahawalpur (Asia’s largest ‘kachi abadi’) with her family. Until just 2017, Yasmin was enrolled in a Government school in her area. This was the only school in her village and happened to be co-...

From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This year’s theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images.

Fatima was studying in a public school in her area (Mely Wali Gali, Bahawalpur) when she was younger. As is characteristic of men in her community, Fatima’s father was not supportive of girls’ education, often taunting her for ‘wasting her time’. The...

From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This year’s theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images. 

Mahrukh is the first girl person in her family to have been enrolled in formal schooling. She is from a family of labourers from Mohajar Colony, Bahawalpur. As is unfortunately the case for many girls in rural Pakistan, culture was the reaso...

From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This year’s theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images. 

Saira is from a Hindu community, one of the minority religions in a predominantly Muslim-country. As a result, Saira and her family were frequently discriminated against by others in their society of Bheel Nagar, Rahim Yar Khan. This made it...

From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This year’s theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images. 

My name is Humaira Farhan. I am 12 years and live in a joint family system in Muzaffargarh, South Punjab. Since even before my birth, my grandmother always scolded my mother for not giving birth to a son. My mother has two daughters, and daughters are considered worthless next to a son in our...

Iram* Shahzadi lives with her family in Bahawalpur. Her father is blind, her mother is suffering from a serious kidney disease, and her siblings have either moved away or are younger than her. This combination makes earning even basic livelihoods for the family a huge challenge. As a result, Iram dropped out of school 7 years ago to run the family shop full-time instead. She handled all matters of the shop, even transporting produce from the market to their shop on her bicycle every morning. This was a very bold move on Iram’s part, as she lives in a society where girls are supposed to stay at home and especially not supposed to travel on bicycles.

Running a shop is difficult work. You have to deal with all sorts of clients, some aggressive, some rude, and some who are just waiting to take advantage of a young girl. This is why Iram’s story is truly a #HearMeToo case. She knew her responsibilities and let nothing, not even the ...

 From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This year’s theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images.

Razia Fatima is a 14-year-old girl living in a slum area in Rahim Yar Khan. Her father is bedridden with deteriorating health and her mother earns minimal wages. She has one elder brother but he does not live at home nor is able to contribute financially to his family. H...

From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This years’ theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images.

Childhood is envisioned as a beautiful period in a person’s life, where one spends their time playing with friends, discovering which ice cream flavor is their favourite, learning to recognize the colours of the rainbow and returning home to warm food and a bedtime story...

From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This year’s theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images.