ILLITERACY in PAKISTAN

“Illiteracy” one of the growing issues for the economic development of Pakistan refers to a person who is ignorant and is not able to read and write. In Pakistan, according to recent survey, it has been concluded that only 54% of the total population is literate. However, this percentage is a little misleading since it also includes the mass who can sign their names and have been put into this category. Illiteracy offers resistance in the progress and development of an individual, as well as society. The purpose of this essay is to analyze main aspects which give rise to the concept of illiteracy in Pakistan.

The first and immediate cause of illiteracy in Pakistan is the economic standing of people of Pakistan. The economy of Pakistan in general is poverty ridden. Illiteracy is directly linked with poverty. It is the most depressive feature of Pakistani people and particularly the people of Pakistan living in rural areas where the people are living beyond the poverty line. They are un-health, ill-fed and ill-clothed; they tend to learn some skills for their livelihood only to be followed by their children to fulfill the basic necessities of life. As a result, they get fewer opportunities of getting quality education, and consequently the teenagers get engaged in their father’s occupation in order to earn for their livings.

The second cause of illiteracy in Pakistan is the mindset of the people of Pakistan which brings up the concept of child labor. Some people think that being educated is worthless, so they send their children to work against their children’s will in the ages in which they are meant to get education. This is due to the lack of awareness about the significance of education. The government of Pakistan should take adequate steps in order to eradicate this problem.

Illiteracy in female population is evident as most of the extremist and other and conservative people consider educating females worthless. The traditional picture of a girl doing the household chores and raising children has been rubbed into their minds and therefore, they cannot be convinced to let their daughters gain knowledge.

If the government fails to take any action against the mentioned causes, the effects will be directly on the economy of Pakistan. If the problem of poverty remains unsolved, which can be solved by government by giving more and more employment opportunites, it will destroy the economy as there will be more ill-fed, ill-clother and unhelath people than healthy person on which the economy of one country is dependent. The mindset of people will affect the economy in a way, that people will be aware of particular skills but to develop or enhance the skill will be the major problem for them. Similarly, according to Islamic Law, girls have equal rights on everything. If the government fails to organize campaigns to eradicate the fact that females are only bound to household works and not professional work, the picture of Arabia before the advent of Islam will be the fate of Pakistan.

Therefore, it can be concluded that strict measures should be taken to eradicate these root causes which resists the spread of education. The government of Pakistan should organize some campaigns against the awareness of education, cheap but quality education should be made available to lower income masses for educating them is the only way to bring peace and serenity in our country.