HERE comes yet another attempt at kick-starting a public discourse on the most neglected issue in Pakistan: public sector education. This time the initiative has been taken by Nargis Rahman, the dynamic head of the Pakistan Women’s Foundation for Peace, which has launched a series of seminars on the subject. Two meetings have been held so far, with one more scheduled.

Nearly a dozen speakers have expressed their views on the malaise of ‘stagnated’ public sector schools in the country. It is remarkable how a variety of problems have been addressed to give participants a better understanding of what is going on.

However, this exercise has so far not produced an answer to a frequently asked question: ‘What can civil society do to get the government to put its education house in order?’ Only those in office can undertake this task. All the speakers were eloquent in analysing the problems, and identifying tentative solutions. They also seemed to know full well that the policymakers are aware of what is wrong and what needs to be done to improve the situation. After all, most of the experts who spoke in the two seminars have either worked with the power wielders, or are now engaged in some form of........

© Dawn