Digital Education in Pakistan: Prospects & Challenges
According to UNESCO, 58 million children over the age of 15 are illiterate in Pakistan, while 22 million children in the age group of 5-16 years are school dropouts. With the pandemic impacting every part of the world, the situation of Pakistan’s education sector is worsening. The author, Muhammad Hashir, notes that the state has adopted several digital education measures and introduced several initiatives—eLearn.Punjab, Teleschool, and Radio School, etc.—to improve Pakistan’s literacy rate and educational outreach. Regardless, the efforts are greatly hindered due to several socio-economic constraints. Apart from these challenges, a survey conducted by the author reveals that education in rural areas is greatly forestalled due to internet connectivity issues and the lack of digital infrastructure.