Pakistan: Punjab's education sector marred by turmoil, setbacks in 2025

Islamabad [Pakistan], December 26 (ANI): The concluding year 2025 has been described as one of the most challenging periods for the education sector in Pakistan's Punjab province, with teachers' bodies and educationists claiming that the public education system remained largely paralysed amid protests, privatisation and policy uncertainty, The Express Tribune reported.
Throughout the year, teachers across the province, including in Rawalpindi, repeatedly took to the streets to protest government policies they said were detrimental to public education. According to education sector sources, nearly 5,800 schools and 71 colleges were handed over to the private sector in 2025, while the government continued a phased plan to outsource a total of 10,500 primary schools, The Express Tribune reported.
Teachers' organisations claim that privatisation, coupled with inflation, led to a sharp increase in student dropout rates, with an estimated 700,000 children leaving school following outsourcing. The number of street children in the Punjab province reportedly rose to nearly 30 million, raising serious concerns, The Express Tribune reported.
The situation is expected to deteriorate further as educational institutions in rural areas are also being sold, leading to additional dropouts. In several government schools, enrolment has reportedly fallen below 100 students.
During this year, around 14,000 teachers and assistant education officers were not regularised, while over 46,000 surplus teachers were transferred to remote areas far from their homes. Promotions for nearly 25,000 senior teachers under the in-service quota were also stalled on the pretext of merit-based head teacher appointments, The Express Tribune reported.
Teachers' unions also criticised the introduction of mandatory "teacher licencing", under which educators will be required to pass a test from 2026 to continue teaching, calling it a threat to job security despite years of experience and professional qualifications.
Officials said that around 120,000 teaching posts from Grade 14 to Grade 20 remain vacant across the Punjab province.
These include approximately 74,000 positions for primary, elementary and secondary teachers, as well as 3,661 Grade-17 head teachers, 1,173 Grade-18 officers and nearly 900 senior posts in Grades 19 and 20, The Express Tribune reported.
Due to outsourcing, the number of educational institutions reportedly declined from 52,000 to 38,000. Upgrading Quran teachers, IT lab in-charges, lab assistants, and lab attendants could not be implemented this year.
Teachers' bodies also alleged that more than 5,000 teachers were served show-cause notices, and FIRs were registered against them for refusing to perform duties related to the socio-economic registration survey. Additionally, nearly 1,500 upgraded afternoon schools were shut down due to financial constraints, The Express Tribune reported.
Approximately 32 teachers' organisations and their 61 groups reported that none of their demands were accepted during the year. Teachers and non-teaching staff reportedly received no financial relief, while pension benefits saw a record reduction.
Hardship transfers and politically motivated attachments also left several primary schools either vacant or operating with a single teacher, further affecting learning outcomes.
Leaders of major teachers' associations, including Punjab SES Teachers Association representatives Nadeem Iqbal and Muhammad Shafiq Bhalowalia, Punjab Educators Association President Malik Amjad and Punjab Teachers Union Secretary General Rana Liaquat Ali, termed 2025 a year focused solely on policy announcements. They said six education policies were introduced, but none delivered tangible results, according to The Express Tribune.
The teachers' leaders demanded the formulation of a national education policy, an end to privatisation, fresh recruitment for vacant posts, and the withdrawal of non-academic duties such as election, polio, and dengue surveys from teachers.
They warned that without economic security and professional respect for teachers, the education system would continue to deteriorate.
Meanwhile, the Education Minister of Punjab province, Rana Sikandar, defended the government's approach, stating that board examination results of government schools were encouraging this year due to effective education policies. He said teachers were being provided facilities such as scooters, easy loans and laptops, and maintained that outsourcing would ultimately improve the quality of education in the province, The Express Tribune reported. (ANI)