Media Tracking Report 1 - 22 May, 2020

Education in Pakistan

Covid-19 — A wakeup call for higher : Ahmad Ahsan - Prism by DAWN From cancelling classes and exams to emptying dorms to research stuck in limbo, higher education institutes around the world are facing increasing uncertainty. In order to get ahead of the events, educational institutes need to react skilfully and strategically. A forward thinking multi-pronged approach that is cognizant of equity, and combines the basics of management and with entrepreneurship, healthcare, policymaking, and technology may prove invaluable for developing countries.

In the world’s fifth-most-populous country, distance learning is a single television channel - Washington Post With the onset of the pandemic, and lockdown in place, the government decided to use a single television channel as an alternative means of learning. Programmed with content for kindergarten through high school, it provides each grade one hour of curriculum per day, so students have to watch in shifts. Now, for millions of Pakistani schoolchildren, that single channel is their only access to education. And even that channel isn’t available to everyone. This will likely lead to great learning losses, and possibly a lower number of returning students once schools reopen.

The uneven playing field: Faisal Bari - DAWN If online classes are to allow students to learn, households need to develop SOPs. Students need space, and silence in the background. They need a corner that they can get familiar with and use to attend classes, study, think, write and so on. When students attend live classes they need to concentrate and not be distracted by background chatter and when microphones are on, they need assurance that they will not be disturbed. Home environment might be as big a factor, if not bigger, in making the field uneven between students. It seems to have a gender dimension as well.

Board exams cancelled, school closure extended till July 15 across country - DAWN The National Coordination Com­mittee (NCC) has extended the closure of educational institutions in the country till July 15 and cancelled examinations to be conducted by the boards in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. After the NCC meeting, Federal Education Minister Shahfqat Mahmood said that it had been decided that students of 10th and 12th classes would be promoted on the basis of their earlier results. While emphasising that further decisions will be made in consultation with stakeholders.

Private schools reject govt’s decision to remain closed till July 15 - Pakistan Today All Pakistan Schools Federation President Kashif Mirza rejected the government’s decision to keep the educational institutions closed until July 15 and to cancel exams, terming it “economic murder”. Mirza said that 90 per cent private school buildings are rented while teachers are to be paid their salaries too. “Around 50% schools would be shut down permanently and one million people would lose their jobs if educational institutes remained closed until July 15,” Mirza said. “It is impossible to recover educational losses due to the coronavirus lockdown.” He demanded the government formulate SOPs and announce reopening of schools across Pakistan from June 1, otherwise they would be forced to reopen schools under their own SOPs.

CPEC in Pakistan

Pakistan request opens door for Belt and Road project debt relief - Asian Review Pakistan sought the extension of a debt repayment period on $30 billion in loans for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC, the flagship project in the massive BRI -building program. China agreeing could save Pakistan around $500 million in annual cash flow. Pakistan is not only an important ally, but the CPEC is also too significant to be allowed to fail. At this time of crisis, Beijing will have to provide some form of debt assistance, the only question being what kind.

Soldiers killed in two separate attacks in Pakistan's Balochistan - Al Jazeera At least seven soldiers have been killed in recent separatist violence in the province of Balochistan. The $60bn China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project has brought renewed attention to the province, where a major deep-water in the town of Gwadar is the culmination of a route being established to link China with the Arabian Sea through the length of Pakistan. Baloch separatists have termed the projects "imperialism" and targeted Chinese engineers and workers associated with them. Thousands of Pakistani military and paramilitary personnel are deputed to protect CPEC infrastructure projects still under construction.

IMF and Pakistan

Khusro appreciates IMF’s support of $ 1.386 billion under Rapid Financing Instrument to Pakistan - APP The Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Makhdum Khusro Bakhtyar has thanked the IMF’s support of US$ 1.386 billion under the Rapid Financing Instrument to address the socioeconomic impact of the COVID-19 outbreak. Ms. Teresa Daban Sanchez, Resident Representative of IMF concurred in her meeting, promising IMF cooperation for sustainable economic growth in future.

Pakistan, IMF technical talks underway - The News The technical talks were aimed at evolving consensus on macroeconomic and fiscal framework where some numbers were quite crucial such as the budget deficit, primary deficit, FBR’s revenue collection target and major expenditures heads as well as structural reforms related to autonomy of the central banks, tackling of monster of circular debt of power sector and bringing reforms into taxation machinery.

Civil Service Reforms

Govt’s top civil service reformer unveils reform agenda - The News Government’s top adviser on civil service reforms Dr Ishrat Hussain unveiled the variety of changes being made in the country’s bureaucratic structures and systems from civil servants’ induction, recruitment, training, performance, promotion, compensation and retirement to institution building, devolution, accountability and service delivery.

Retirement rules cause unease among civil servants - DAWN At a time when dozens of civil servants superseded in the recent promotions are already in litigation, the government’s move for premature retirement of delinquent officers has added to the growing unrest among the echelon of the civil bureaucrats. Advi­sor to the Prime Minister for Institutional Reforms and Austerity Dr Ishrat Hussain defended the new rules stating that they had been made to ensure service delivery and performance of the civil service. And said that the government had notified the promotion rules in the light of the direction of the Supreme Court.

Climate Change in Pakistan

Locust attack threatens food security in Pakistan: Muhammad Akbar Notezai, Atika Rehman - DAWN In Balochistan, desert locusts are busy eating crops. According to residents of Garang, a poor, sparsely populated village in Washuk district which lies a few hundred kilometres from Iran, hopper bands of the Schistocerca gregaria — commonly known as the desert locust — are growing by the day, gradually eating away at cultivated lands. In a report prepared recently for Pakistan, the Food and Organisation (FAO) has warned of a locust invasion, with losses to agriculture possibly reaching PKR 205 billion (USD 1.3 billion). Climate conditions are certainly drivers of locust population dynamics, rain is an enabler for desert locust reproduction and given the right conditions, a locust population can increase 20-fold every three months according to FAO.

A Moment of Clarity: Syed Muhammad Abubakar - DAWN Data shows that the closure of and has lowered in cities like Lahore and Karachi. The question is how can we keep this momentum going when the lockdowns are eased? With many factories shut down, transport at a near-complete halt and a substantial reduction in oil consumption, pollution levels may have decreased, but this comes at a cost. And a cost that many businesses, struggling with the economic blow of the lockdown, will be clambering to remedy once lockdown subsides. But policymakers must learn from this moment of clarity and work towards a Pakistan with cleaner air.