Learning a Lesson

1994 Comments on Edcation in Pakistan Hold True In 2004

by Imran Anwar

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From imran Mon Oct 31 12:00:21 1994 - POSTED TO SCP
  
Assalam Alaikum, readers.  I have followed with interest the discussion that has taken place about education in Pakistan.
 
Fortunately the discussions are back on track.  Here is my humble opinion regarding education in Pakistan.
 
We HAD excellent schools (where we had them) before:
 
a) Mr Bhutto's lunatic nationalization of education and later,
 
b) General Zia's idiotic destruction of the English language as a medium of communication.
 
 Before a) we had schools in the private sector, and because ofthe profit motive it was in the interest of business people to open more schools in new areas. Before b) we had graduates who could hold their own in highereducation even if they had to come abroad for studies.  Now our graduates cannot even read a newspaper headline, much less technical books written in English.
 
 a) damaged our NATIOANAL level education system, b) killed off the chances that our graduates had for competing in the (English speaking) international marketplace.
  
We need TWO levels of educational development in Pakistan, one to undo the national LACK of education, and the second to improve quality of the output of higher institutions of learning.
 
 We need schools, literally, in "galee-galee-koocha-koocha" and in every village and every corner of Pakistan.  We need these schools to be imparting at least the BASIC reading skills PLUS the elementary level of our rights and responsibilities as citizens of Pakistan.
 
 At the same time we need NOT more Universities (which generally are slow moving white elephants) but BETTER management of the ones we have.
  
It may appear that I am, like some on SCP ( ;-) ), merely talking about what SHOULD be done instead of what *I AM* doing or what *YOU CAN* do.  Bear, and hear, me out. :-)
  
As some of you may know, I have had some connection with the media in Pakistan, especially the newspaper industry.  Also, because of my business interests in Pakistan I have some contacts among "major industrialists" in Pakistan.
  
I am sure you will agree that in general we, Pakistanis, are likely to do good things or grand things if i) we can appreciate that we will get recognition for it, and ii) if we see someone else doing it and want to outdo them :-)
 
I personally do not see any harm in playing upon this desire to be one-up on others if the energy can be channeled to good things.  I believe that if we can give enough attention we can find people who instead of saying "Malik sahib got a new Pajero, I will get a new Land Cruiser" can be made to say "Khan sahib built a new school in his village, I will build a college" and so on.
 
So what if these people could be driven more by ego than by "genuine" desire to make things better.... it is debatable anyway, a study of history shows that leadership and achievement go hand in hand with a healthy dose of ego :-)  

So, with this in mind, I have been talking to newspaper owners in Pakistan and telling them that right now they are rich and succesful with barely 10% literacy nationally (actually some of them are barely 10% literate themselves ;-) ), imagine what it would be like if THEY helped finance basic education nation-wide.  THEY would benefit in the long run in higher circulations, bigger readerships and more advertising for their newspapers etc. 
 
All this AND the knowledge that it would have been a national service too. I have received very good feedback on my efforts in this regard and am working (slowly, due to a lack of time :-( ) on the details of how thiswill be done.  Suggestions and feedback from you would be welcome.
 
 At the other level I have talked to "industrialists" type people to help improve institutions of higher learning, just for example, Packages' Syed Babar Ali donates computers to UET, let us say Shehzada Alam Mannoo finances a new Mechanical Engineering curriculum at Taxila (e.g. only).  And why not get Mian X. Y. Shah excited about starting a new private college for business administration just to prove he can outdo Syed Babar Ali (and others) who started LUMS.
 
 I have focussed on the newspaper owners because I have contacts there and also because they can benefit on the whole national level, but my point is that ALL of us have SOME contacts, and know SOME people who can be made interested in doing SOMETHING at ANY level to get the real revolution going at the real grass roots level.
 
These are my opinions only.  You may not agree with my opinions or my efforts, but that is alright.  You will surely have some other way to try to make a difference.  Let us all just do what we all can.
 
 Thank you for your attention
 
Sincerely
 
Imran Anwar
 imran@imran.com

http://www.imran.com for opinions on what happened and why and what's next.