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Habibullah Sarbazi

Education is one of the fundamental institutions in every country, with critical goals and responsibilities entrusted to it. In the 20-year vision of the Islamic Republic of Iran and in the National Development Plan, “knowledge” has been designated as the main foundation for development in all dimensions and its implementation has been identified as one of the priorities of the education system. Geographical, cultural, religious, and ideological limitations should not hinder fair and equal access to education for smaller groups of the population, solely based on their ethnic, religious, and cultural differences. Attention and investment in the education sector is not only a necessity for the growth and prosperity of a nation, but for all of humanity worldwide. The importance and necessity of having a sound education system is evident in the fact that today, healthy breathing is directly linked to a healthy education system.

Root problems and deprivation in schools of Sistan and Baluchestan.

Proper and desirable education and upbringing form the framework for the growth and development of modern human societies and are considered as the source of progress and development for today’s societies and nations. The executive leaders of a country must plan for a reasonable, realistic, and effective educational framework before taking any action to achieve long-term sustainable development goals. Achieving this requires serious determination and coordination from managers, educational and executive decision-makers, and special attention from government officials in allocating sufficient and necessary resources. A country will face complex challenges and even impossibilities in achieving secondary goals for sustainable development until it has a defined and strong education system.

The education and training sector is the source of fundamental changes and growth in modern societies. The production and allocation of skilled and specialized human resources in all fields in a healthy, dynamic, and powerful society is heavily dependent on self-sufficiency in having experienced and skilled workforce. Therefore, the ability to empower individuals and communities, both small and large, is contingent upon strengthening and consolidating data, tools, and human resources that appear in various essential roles, both quantitatively and qualitatively. If we take a closer and more analytical look at the importance of this vital issue, we will realize that the countries that have achieved significant progress in economic growth and development in recent decades have mostly followed successful models that have taken steps towards improving and developing the quantity and quality of their nations. In this regard, a prominent and tangible example is the remarkable successes of South Korea, which have emulated the Japanese education system. One of the most important and effective policies and executive measures to achieve this goal is to

The second challenge and serious obstacle in achieving the desired level of development is the severe shortage of allocated educational funds for schools in this province; which will be addressed in the next levels.

As previously mentioned, the educational problems in Balochistan have a long history and are deeply rooted. By “deeply rooted,” it means that since the time of the two dynasties in Iran, during two specific and defining periods, namely the early years of the Pahlavi father’s reign from 1305-1320 and the Pahlavi son’s reign from 1320-1357, any apparent efforts to eradicate illiteracy through the cooperation and actions of the Sepah-e Danesh (Knowledge Corps), especially in rural areas, were not fundamental and far-sighted measures towards establishing strong educational infrastructure. If we compare the progress and development of the education sector in Sistan and Balochistan during those periods with other provinces, we can see a significant gap in terms of all educational indicators, such as designing a modern educational system, hiring skilled and competent teachers, equipping schools with standard educational materials and other welfare and comfort facilities, or the lack of action towards building

According to Abdolghafour Irannejad, one of the representatives of the parliament in this province, the cities of Chabahar, Konarak, Nikshahr, and Qasr-e Qand have a total population of 585,000. However, they have the worst educational conditions in the country and unfortunately, the participation and seriousness of the Ministry of Education and the General Office of Renovation, Development, and Equipping of schools in the province is very weak. This province is in dire need of hiring at least three thousand local and new human resources in these four cities. The problem of teacher shortage in these areas is so severe that in the surrounding villages, one teacher is forced to teach in two shifts every day. This serious issue has led to a significant decline in academic performance among students in deprived schools.

The status of education and training in Sistan and Baluchestan in terms of having desirable and standard indicators.

This is a picture of a beautiful sunset over the mountains.
A Kupri school in Sistan and Baluchestan – Photo from Tasnim

Distribution and provision of educational services in Balochistan is not only satisfactory in terms of employing qualified teachers and instructors, but also in terms of other desirable indicators such as having sufficient and necessary educational facilities, as well as various amenities and welfare facilities such as cooling and heating systems, suitable clothing and uniforms, sufficient financial capacity to cover educational expenses and purchase stationery, healthy and nutritious meals, and having buildings with standard classrooms that are resistant and strong against natural disasters, which is currently very inadequate and concerning.

The state of education in the province in the public school sector is such that the further we move away from the smart and standard schools in the capital towards this province, the more we are faced with a shortage of educational personnel, standard classrooms, adequate and necessary space, and other basic facilities; such as cultural and health facilities that require special planning and implementation for years and decades to come. But unfortunately, the situation in rural and nomadic schools is even worse. It is not an exaggeration to say that the schools located in remote villages and nomadic areas in Balochistan are only schools in name, but in reality, there is no sign of a school. Students in these schools are deprived of even the minimum educational and welfare facilities to continue their studies. The low income level of rural and nomadic households is a serious problem in the way of their children’s education, and in many cases, it leads to dropping out of school – especially in primary and first year of high school. The

According to Alireza Nokhahi, the director general of education in Sistan and Baluchestan province, in an interview with Mehr news agency, there are 18,000 classrooms throughout the province, of which 11,000 are in need of major repairs. The cost of reconstruction for these classrooms is a staggering amount (approximately 3 trillion tomans) and exceeds the capacity of the education organization in this province. To reach the national average, there is a need for 800,000 square meters of educational space. In addition, hundreds of temporary schools must also be added, as stated by the head of the Islamic Council of Sistan and Baluchestan, with the number of these schools exceeding 800.

He said, “This province is currently facing a shortage of 8,000 teachers. Alireza Nakhai stated, “Sistan and Baluchestan is the only province in the country that does not have a set quota for hiring teachers due to its unique conditions.” He expressed, “In Sistan and Baluchestan, there are 28,000 teachers and 9,000 employees in various positions such as managers, deputies, and staff. In the academic year of 2017, there were 581,000 students studying in 1,900 educational units.”

The Director General of the Department of Renovation and Equipment of Schools in the provinces of Baluchistan and Sistan also stated in an interview with Mehr News Agency that in order to reach the country’s per capita income, more than three thousand billion tomans are needed through a five-year plan. To meet the country’s standards, 700 billion tomans must be allocated annually to Sistan and Baluchistan province. However, this is while the total provincial and national allocations have averaged around 70 billion tomans in recent years. In other words, only one-tenth of the required budget has been allocated annually.

Alireza Rashki said: “Currently, there are about 800 prefabricated classes in difficult-to-reach areas. And there are 6,000 classrooms in the province with inadequate conditions, made of mud and clay, which require urgent reconstruction. There are approximately 100,000 dropouts in the first and second levels of secondary education in the province. The per capita sports hall for each student is only nineteen square meters.”

Alireza Rashki added: “Demolition and reconstruction of dilapidated schools, landscaping and standardization of sanitary services, cooling and heating systems in schools, replacement of outdated equipment in schools, organizing boarding schools, optimizing and equipping vocational and technical high school workshops, establishing a network and organizing water, electricity, and telephone connections for boarding schools, and increasing the capacity of sports halls are among the indicators that require funding.”

“ما بهترین دوستان هستیم”

“We are the best friends.”
One Kapri school in Nikshahr – Photo from IRNA

Furthermore, in terms of health and hygiene indicators, students in this province are in very poor and fragile conditions. The low income of families and other financial and economic problems, as well as the inability to provide adequate and sufficient nutrition for their children, have led them to diseases such as malnutrition, stunted growth, anemia, and deficiencies in iron, calcium, and protein. These families are often those who have only relied on subsidies in recent years. In addition, many research findings on the nomadic student community show that the education system in nomadic areas of the province is in a very inadequate state in all areas, including the utilization coefficient of educational space, teacher density, and distribution of teachers in all levels of education, and educational opportunities have not been fairly distributed.

At the end, it is worth mentioning some statistical information about the students of the province (based on the statistics published on the website of the Balochistan and Sistan Education Organization).

Number of schools: 6,531 schools

Number of classes: 24,469 classes

Number of students: 562,220 people

Number of female students: 257,325 people

Number of male students: 304,895 people