Dancing around a fire is not a solution to any problem. We have to delve deep beneath the surface in order to grasp the main reasons that may have exasperated the issue. Despite a flurry of strong words, nothing concrete has been done to regulate a proper literacy monitoring program.
Rather the situation has taken a quantum leap for the worse. There have been some periods of improvement yet the country needs to address specific political, economic, social, and religious issues if the aim is to improve this portfolio.
In simple words, the literacy rate is defined as a set educational barometer from which individuals’ rudimentary reading and writing skills are calculated. Different nations have different standards for calculating their individual literacy rate but they meet on the common ground that any individual who is able to read a newspaper in his national language and able to write his name will be considered literate.
The literacy rate in Pakistan measures the literate persons of Pakistan on the basis of percentages through data conducted after a fixed timeframe. In the 21st century, literacy is taken as religion, blood in the veins of the nation, strength in the muscles of any nation, and fuel to its progress.
In this comity of nations, those countries which have the highest literacy rate are the maker of the present global and regional order while others are merely followers and the underdeveloped have no say in the scheme of things. As far as the literacy rate of Pakistan is concerned, the rate of this holy land remains hovering around 60 to 63% which is lower considering the regional neighbors.
Decoding The Term ‘Literacy Rate’
According to UNESCO,
‘ Literacy is defined by the percentage of the population of an age group that can read and write. It is typically measured according to the ability to comprehend a short simple statement on every life. Generally, literacy also encompasses numeracy, and measurement may incorporate a simple assessment of arithmetic ability.‘
As per the UN,
‘ Literacy rate is defined as within the population who are capable of using written words in daily life and continue to learn’.
WHO decodes this term,
‘ For statistical purposes, a person is literate who can with understanding both read and write a short simple statement on his everyday life;
What is the Current Literacy Rate in Pakistan?
As per the data of the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training, the current literacy rate of Pakistan is 62.3% which means that an estimated population of 60 million is illiterate in the country.
If we dug deep we will find that Pakistan’s literacy rate for 2019 was 58%.
When you look around the regional countries, you will find that Sri Lanka has a literacy rate of 92.25%, Myanmar has a rate of 89.07%, Bangladesh has a respective rate of 74.68%, the Philippines stands around 96.28%, and Uzbekistan has achieved the milestone of 100%. Even India which is our arch-enemy has a rate of 77.7% in 2022.
The literacy rate in Pakistan for males and females is 58% to 70%. Almost 22 million students of age group 5-16 in Pakistan are still out of school representing 44% of the total population.
How is the Literacy Rate Gauged in Pakistan?
Now let us discuss the literacy measuring mechanism. Two separate survey tools were used to collect the data. The object of the study is people from 5-59 years, who have completed their primary education but did notable avail elementary or beyond levels of education. Researchers use certain procedures like as sum of coded values, percentage distribution, and average.
As per the different studies conducted grade six may be determined as the foundation grade to determine the literate, which may be generalized to other parts of the country:
Descriptive Survey
This method is often used to conduct this study. Both urban and rural areas are taken together. Population age is taken between 10-59 years who have completed primary schooling.
Sampling
Sampling is selected by using stratified sampling techniques. So four villages and four towns from each subdivision of the household roster are developed by the researcher. The household survey is used to get background information on the respondents. Stage one helps to identify the literate population.
Sources
Sources of information include the Population Census. Projected Literacy Rate, Researcher Survey.
Dissecting the Conditions of the Literacy Rate in Pakistan
While dissecting the conditions of literacy rate in general, the youth literacy rate is 79.1% for males and 61.5% for females. As per the recent report of the Ministry of Education, there are 380 out of every 1000 Pakistanis aged 15 and above have never had any formal schooling.
Of the remaining 622 who got enrolled in schools. 22 dropped out before finishing primary school and 598 completed it. Almost 22 million children have no access to schools and the bulk of it is girls 63%.
Highest Literacy Rate in Pakistan
Pakistan Economic Survey mentions the Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement which reads,
‘ The literacy rate of the population aged 10 years and above is stagnant at 60 percent. But the provincial analysis suggests that Punjab has the highest literacy rate with 64% followed by Sindh at 58%, KP at 55%, and Balochistan at 46%.’
According to PBS, Rawalpindi stands first with the highest literacy rate with 82.45% of its total population. This data shows that Karachi’s Central District spotted the second with a literacy rate of 81.52% of its total population. Pakistan’s capital city Islamabad stands at the third spot and has an 81.49% educated population.
Literacy Rate in Provincial Capitals
As per PBS, Lahore’s 77.80 population is literate. In Sindh, the province Korangi and Central District have been listed as areas having literacy rates. Peshawar has a 55.4 literacy rate while the literacy rate of Quetta is 58%.
Male and Female Literacy Rate in Pakistan
According to UNESCO,
Pakistan has an adult literacy rate of 59.13%. While the male literacy rate is 71.12% for females it is 46.47%.
Considering the general literacy rate of 63%, the major chunk is of men which are 70% while the female literacy rate is around 48%. 22 million children do not attend schools the majority are girls. By grade nine, only 13% of girls are able to be enrolled in school. Whenever it comes to any issue, rural women are always at the receiving end, the rural women’s literacy rate is just 27%. Out of 22 million out-of-school children, 12 million are girls.
Literacy Rate of Provinces in Pakistan
When it comes to provincial levels, we see that Punjab stands tall with a literacy rate of 64%. Sindh comes next in the queue and posts a figure of 58%. KP has a reasonable rate of 55% while Balochistan has the lowest literacy rate in the country with just 46%.
Literacy Rate in Pakistan District Wise
In the following paragraph, we will present the literacy rate of Pakistan district-wise and their respective rankings;
First, Karachi’s two districts-Cental and Korangi, have the highest literacy rate in Pakistan after Islamabad and Rawalpindi as compared to other parts of the country, the latest statistics by the PBS show. Rawalpindi stands first with the highest literacy rate of 82.45%. The data shows that the male literacy rate is 88% while the female literacy rate is 76.79%. Similarly, the literacy rate in rural areas of the city is 79.89% and in the urban is 84%.
Related Resouce: Importance of Female Education in Pakistan
Following the city of Rawalpindi, Karachi’s Central District was spotted as second with a literacy rate of 81.52%. Islamabad stands at the 3rd position in terms of literacy rate. The city has an 81.49% educated population. Korangi stands 4th in the loss of highly educated districts. Its literacy rate is 80%.
Punjab’s Districts
Lahore posted a figure of 77%. Faisalabad’s literacy rate is 69%. Multan has a 60% figure to its claim and Sialkot has a 77% literacy rate. Among other districts, Jhelum has the highest literacy rate with 78.94% after Rawalpindi. Gujrat is spotted in the fourth position with a literacy rate of 78.68%.
Sindh’s Districts
Korangi and Central District have been listed as areas having the highest literacy rate. But 65.76% population of Hyderabad is also well-educated. Sukkar’s literacy rate is 54, Mirpur has 42 percent and Larkana has a 53 percent literacy rate. Karachi South has a rate of 77%, Karachi West 65 percent, and Malir 63 percent.
KP’s Districts
Peshawar has a 55.4 percent literacy rate. Abbottabad district has the highest literacy rate of 76.20 percent as compared to other districts. Karak has 63 percent, Mansehra has 62 percent and Malakand has a 61% literacy rate.
Balochistan’s Districts
Quetta city has a 58 percent educational population. Other districts with the top literacy rate are Kech with 62 percent, Panjgur literacy rate of 59 percent, and Pishin a rate of 52 percent.
The City on the Top Notch Position In Literacy Rate List
When it comes to the literacy rate in Pakistan, the question that emerges in many minds may be which city has the highest literacy rate in Pakistan. As per the data collected by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics and the Population Census of 2017, Rawalpindi tops the list of highly educated and literate districts of Pakistan with a score of 82.45%.
Multiple Barriers in the Way of Realizing the Vision of High Rate in Pakistan
In order to treat an ailment one may have to look at the various causes which may have exasperated the situation. Following is my analysis regarding the dismal picture of the literacy rate in Pakistan:
A Large Swathes of Areas Bereft of Basic Infrastructure
As per a survey conducted by Alif Alaan, respondents indicated that the lack of basic facilities is the root cause of the present dilemma. The top-rated barrier to females ‘ low literacy in Balochistan was the lack of basic facilities.
Mostly chairs, tables, technology, well-qualified teachers, lack of playgrounds school uniforms, stationery, and highly qualified teachers are required who can influence the personality of a child in a better way.
Most of the schools lack classrooms, furniture, toilets, and water. Most of the schools lack transport facilities. Most of the respondents feel that girls do not go to school because of safety and security reasons. The parents feel reluctant to send their daughters to school.
According to UNESCO, nearly, 10.7 million boys and 8.6 million girls are enrolled at the primary level and this group drops to 3.6 million boys and 2.8 million girls at the lower secondary level.
Lack of Qualified Teachers
Most of the respondents were worried about the teaching staff. The cause of low enrollment in Pakistan is the absence of charismatic personalities. As per the recent data shown by UNESCO, Pakistan has the world’s second highest number of out-of-school children with an estimated 22.8 million children aged 5-16 not attending school, representing 44 percent of the total population.
In this age group, 5 million children are not enrolled in schools and after primary school age, the number of school children doubles with 11.4 million children not receiving formal education.
Existence of Social and Cultural Taboos
This land of holy people is notoriously famous for propagating illogical and unfounded social taboos. Many of the girls have to leave school before completing their primary level. Most of the tribal chiefs and self-professed religious scholars discourage the learning of girls. They feel that an educated girl cannot be a good wife. In recent history, these extremists and fringed elements bombed the schools of girls.
Financial Constraints
The financial constraints are another main reason fuelling the problem of low enrollment rates in Pakistan The agricultural portfolio employs a large number of people. Most of these are hardly bread-earners for their large families. So they cannot send their children to school. The findings of various studies have shown that poverty is the main reason why parents can’t send their daughters to school.
Overpopulation
In 2018, the total population of Pakistan amounted to approximately 200.96 million inhabitants. Overpopulation is coupled with poverty and it contributes to a low literacy rate.
Low Budget for Education
Allocation of the budget for the education sector is not enough. Pakistan is one of the only 12 countries in the world that spends less than two percent of its GDP on education. The government has allocated 83.3 billion rupees for education.
Ineffective Government Policies
The education system of Pakistan is not pragmatic. It does not teach the students to deal with practical life. A poor examination system encourages rote learning which prevents the students from grasping the concepts and learning things practically.
Steps Taken by the Concerned Parties
The concerned parties have been fighting tooth and nail to mitigate the worsening situation. First, the federal ministry has established over 170,190 adult literacy centers across the country including AJK and GB.
Moreover, the government has imparted basic literacy and numeracy skills to around 3.98 million adults.
Further, the Community Learning Center may be termed as a local institution that is established and run by the community for its own socio-economic development. Through this, NCHD provides lifelong learning opportunities for community members including children, youth, and adults.
Last but not least, the government has launched its National Literacy Programme which particularly targets out-of-school children.
Related Resource: How Reading Changes Your Life?
Plugging out the Loopholes and Promoting Literacy Rate in Pakistan
It is the right time to resolve the issue of the low literacy rate once and for all as it has capped the climax:
Teach in the Mother Language
English is the official language of Pakistan and we are all very well aware of its importance but w cannot ignore Urdu as well, so the first step we teach Urdu and English both at the same level and then gradually level up to English. As Jack Edwards puts it,
What is a nation without a mother tongue?
Use Technology
Secondly, We are living in a digital era where everyone uses smartphones. If we build digital libraries for both teachers and students it will benefit
Make an App to Provide Tutors
Through this platform, people living in underdeveloped cities can also connect with some good tutors.
Awareness to be Spread Among the Masses
It is the right time to spread awards among societies and backward areas of the country. It should be made clear that education is the basic obligation of every Muslim. Besides, article 25-A of the constitution enjoins us to make our masses learn and educate our children.
Consistent Policies
In addition to that, pragmatic and consistent policies should be followed in true spirit. Every incumbent government should have the guts to appreciate the pragmatic steps of their predecessors
Involvement of NGs and Private Stakeholders
Last but not least, reputed NGOs and private stakeholders should be encouraged to step in and fill the existing gap in online as well as physical infrastructure. Further, the issue of ghost teachers should be resolved once and for all by the education ministry.
Wrapping Up
To sum up, we have seen how the literacy rate of Pakistan presents a dismal picture keeping in view the position of other regional countries. In fact, Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries in the region having low literacy rates. Those who are hatching the nefarious designs in this favor do not know that they are bridging their own boats.
Recent history has shown us that though the ship seems to be stagnant and all the signals are down. But the day is not far when this holy land will be able to defeat the ever-increasing problem of low literacy rates through its consistent struggle. All this is easier said than done.