The Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association has made a joint statement calling for the government to allocate at least 500 billion rupees for universities in Pakistan in the 2023-2024 recurrent budget. Additionally, they called for 200 billion rupees in the development budget. The federation also demanded that provincial governments provide adequate resources for universities under their administration. Specifically, the Balochistan Government was urged to allocate 10 billion rupees in aids and grants for Balochistan’s public sector universities.
Currently, the budget for education in Pakistan stands at 326 billion rupees. The federation believes that the share of public sector universities has been reduced in the last year’s budget. This reduction has plunged several universities into financial crisis as they could not pay salaries to their employees and faculty members. The federation urged the government to increase their allocation to prevent future financial difficulties.
The joint statement was endorsed by the President, Vice-President, General-Secretary, executive council members, and others of the federation. They estimate that Pakistan’s annual fiscal budget for 2023-2024 is roughly 10 trillion rupees. The federation demands that the government allocate at least 500 billion rupees to the 200 public sector universities operating within the country. They also urge the government to allocate 200 billion rupees from the development budget for infrastructure projects in these universities.
Comparing Pakistan’s education budget with the developed world, the teachers’ federation highlighted that developed countries allocate 6% of their GDP to education. Meanwhile, India spends over 4% of its GDP on education, and Pakistan only spends 2% of its GDP on education. The federation believes this inadequate funding is the root cause of the country’s education system being in disarray.
In light of this situation, the federation called upon employees and faculty members at other universities in Pakistan to raise their voice for the cause. They encouraged rallies and demonstrations to make themselves heard. The federation believes that only by working together, can they force federal and provincial governments to increase their spending on education.
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