Pakistan in 2022 experienced its worst floods in a century, with glacial lakes bursting, rivers breaking their banks, flash flooding, and landslides.  More than 94 of the country’s 160 districts were declared by the government as “calamity-hit.” The floods caused more than 1,700 fatalities and about 33 million people (about 15% of the country’s population) were devastatingly affected.  

Nearly two years have passed since the flood in 2022.  Over two million children continue to struggle for access to safe school facilities in Sindh Province. The condition of children in danger is a clear signal that immediate action is needed.  Provincial leaders are fully committed, as shown by the large amount of funds allocated from the province's yearly development plan.

Sindh province suffered most of the damage with almost half – more than 19,000 – of primary and secondary schools either partially or fully damaged. In 2023, most of the damaged schools were still in poor condition.

School children bear harsh weather conditions with temperatures frequently rising above 46°C (115°F) between May and August, and dropping to 2°C (36°F) during December and January.

The road to recovery is patchy. Humanitarian agencies have supported over 1,600 temporary learning centers in tents, but they are insufficient to support all children who need to be enrolled.  Only 30% of the flood-damaged schools can expect full rehabilitation under plans by the government and development partners.  

The province faced significant disparities in access to education even before the floods. The pandemic saw its net enrolment rate for primary education (age: 5–9) decline from 51% (55% boys and 46% girls) in 2014–2015 to 45% (49% boys and 40% girls) in 2019–2020.

The floods only exacerbated inequalities by restricting access, especially for girls.  The recently published Pakistan Education Statistics (2021-22) estimates out-of-school children in Sindh at 7.63 million—a situation that needs immediate attention.

Sindh’s education sector has long struggled to reduce dropout rates, improve teaching and learning and implement its district education plans. Several factors have hampered this process, including the lack of a strategic planning unit to guide implementation of the Sindh’s education sector plan and inadequate capacity to steer reforms. Enrollment, transition, and dropout rates have shown little improvement in recent years.

Education sector planning and budgeting is predominantly centralized in the province, meaning that the decisions are largely made at the provincial level, with only a small portion of the budget distributed to the districts. However, there have been difficulties in effectively utilizing this budget at the district level, primarily due to inadequate local administrative and management capabilities.

In contrast, other provinces have decentralized systems with better monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, which results in improved facilities at schools. For example, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, schools are empowered to request funds from the provincial government. Funding delays, staff shortages, and centralized budget management are key reasons for the inefficient utilization of funds.

The reconstruction effort offers unique opportunities to consider the enhancing role of the private sector, with programs such as the Sindh Education Foundation.

With more autonomy in school operation and resource management, education management organizations are expected to provide a quicker model for decentralization. The reconstruction effort also provides a chance to build back better, include climate-resilient features in school construction, and help communities to prepare better.  

Soon after the floods, the government of Sindh prioritized its support for immediate needs such as housing, livelihood, and agriculture. The housing sector received extra funding from the provincial government budget.

The enormous school reconstruction requirements amounted to an estimated $1.97 billion, which is approximately 47 times larger than the current education sector annual development program allocated for primary and secondary education.

In Sindh, over two million children lack access to safe schools due to extensive flood damage in 2022.

Political uncertainty related to elections has also had an impact, resulting in lengthy approval processes at the provincial and federal levels, causing delays in the implementation of projects. Emergency assistance for flood recovery was not an exception, and it has taken a long time to translate development partners’ commitment into implementable projects. 

There is a strong commitment to advancing the reconstruction of the education sector. However, challenges persist, particularly regarding coordination between the School Education and Literacy Department and development partners to achieve the objectives of the education sector plan. 

 Despite efforts from the government and various partners to support emergency needs and rehabilitation of damaged schools, additional assistance is required due to the extensive impact on schools in Sindh.

Effective coordination among governments, implementing units, and development partners is crucial for success. 

To ensure that Sindh’s children can study in safe and climate-resilient school buildings, there are four actions that should be taken:

Systematic strengthening of the capacity of the School Education Department at all levels is crucial. Therefore, it is important to carefully review the plan's goals. This is essential for achieving the program's main priorities: making education more accessible, better in quality, and improving sector management.

Decentralizing sector management and empowering districts and schools is also essential for a swift and efficient response to disaster and rehabilitation needs. Following successful examples in other provinces, Sindh can empower its districts and schools to manage basic facility needs including water, sanitation, and classrooms. This shift will enable schools to manage maintenance, repair, and operation.  It would shape the future of education in their communities and enhance disaster preparedness at the local level.

 Private sector involvement in school operations has shown its better results in Pakistan. Sindh has already demonstrated its capability to use education management organizations.  Therefore, operationalizing the newly constructed schools through education management organizations is not just a possibility but must be a strategy that is expected to significantly expedite access to education.  

It's important to strengthen the School Education and Literacy Department's capacity to lead and work closely with development partners and governments to prevent doing the same work twice, which wastes resources. This risk can be lowered by setting up a centralized coordination system that gathers information from districts, talukas (sub-districts), and schools to better coordinate efforts.

Only 30% of flood-damaged schools in Sindh are set for full rehabilitation, requiring urgent additional support.

The provincial leadership has recently set aside 25% more for the education sector than the previous year. Specific funds have been allocated for the improvement and upgrading of the flood-affected schools.

A pathway to recovery for the education sector will need to be supported by partnerships with private sectors and development partners. Transformative changes will give more children access to quality education in Sindh province.