bbep.pdf

Duration: February 2016 – October 2020

Budget: € 8.04 million

Location: 11 districts in Balochistan province - Quetta, Pishin, Killa Abdullah, Killa Saifullah, Zhob, Sherani, Katchi, Naseerabad, Jaffarabad, Lasbela, and Gwadar

Implementing Partners: UNICEF

The Balochistan Basic Education Programme (BBEP) is a partnership between the European Union, UNICEF and the Balochistan Secondary Education Department to help improve the quality of the education system in Balochistan, and strengthen its management. Supporting education reforms is one of the priority sectors of the EU in Pakistan, with a focus on achieving full enrolment in education for all children between 5–14 years, uniform levels of good quality education and increased demand for and supply of skilled labour.

The challenge

Although there have been remarkable improvements in the education landscape in Balochistan over the last decade, the sector continues to face a wide range of challenges: low enrollment rates for girls (particularly in rural areas), low transition rates of girls to higher levels of education, high dropout rates (particularly in the first two years of schooling/pre-primary), low quality of teaching/teacher training, teacher absenteeism and inadequate capacities in planning, management and monitoring.

How do we address the challenge?

The project supports the Government of Balochistan in giving universal free and compulsory education to children, with a particular focus on girls, and in improving learning outcomes by providing quality education.

Support to policy

The Balochistan Basic Education Programme is working to improve the quality and governance of the education sector and, in a broader sense, supporting the province’s own education reform agenda, the Balochistan Education Sector Plan. This has resulted in reform progress in the province, with improvements in governance, quality, transparency and accountability in the education sector.

EU in Pakistan

The European Union (EU) funds projects and programmes around the world in order to help addressing global and local challenges. The reduction of poverty and the respect of fundamental rights and freedoms are key objectives in this context.

In Pakistan, the EU is committed to a stable, democratic and pluralistic country that respects human rights and benefits from its full economic potential by supporting sustainable and inclusive development for all its citizens. The EU provides Pakistan with about €100 million annually in grants for development and cooperation. Among other issues, the EU supports Pakistan in its efforts to tackle poverty, increase education, promote good governance, human rights, rule of law and ensure sustainable management of natural resources. EU-funded projects are covering all of Pakistan with a special focus on Sindh and Balochistan.

The collaboration between the European Union and Pakistan is grounded in the Strategic Engagement Plan (SEP) signed in 2019. Areas of cooperation under the SEP include peace and security, democracy, rule of law, human rights, and migration but also sectors such as energy, climate change and science and technology.

The EU is one of Pakistan’s largest trading partners. The EU supports Pakistan’s integration into the world economy and its sustainable economic development, namely by granting it preferential access to the European single market under the GSP+ system since 2014. Under this scheme almost 80% of Pakistan’s exports enter the EU duty and quota free. In 2018, Pakistani exports to the EU were worth €6.9 billion.

In order to enjoy the trade preferences under GSP+, Pakistan needs to demonstrate progress on the implementation of 27 international conventions on human rights, good governance, labour rights and environmental protection.

Delegation of the European Union to Pakistan,

House 9, Street 88, G-6/3, Islamabad

Phone: +92 51 227 1828, Fax: +92 51 282 2604

Email: Delegation-Pakistan@eeas.europa.eu

To report any irregularities contact us on DELEGATION-PAKISTAN-IRREGULARITIES@eeas.europa.eu

See Also

• Balochistan Basic Education Programme