Education ministers to announce a final decision on reopening of educational institutes

The Federal Education Minister, along with the provincial education ministers, will hold a review meeting today to decide on the reopening of educational institutes after analyzing the situation. The educational institutes were closed in November in the wake of Coronavirus in the country.

The Inter-Provincial Education Ministers Conference (IPEMC), to be held at 11:30 am PST, would mull over educational institutions' reopening in three phases.

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Earlier, the education minister had closed all educational institutes, including madrassahs across the country, on the National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) direction from November 26, 2020, till January 10, 2021.

However, the provincial education ministers of Punjab and Sindh are unsure about the decision to reopen institutes on the suggestive date as the novel Coronavirus threat is still lingering across the country, and there is a significant uptick in the virus spread.

Last week, the education minister for Punjab, Murad Raas, showed concern while speaking to a teachers' ceremony that schools' reopening on January 11 seems unlikely as the virus situation isn't clear.

On the other hand, the education minister for Sindh had also said that school closure might be extended as the province is again hit by a large number of Coronavirus positive cases and mortalities.

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Meanwhile, the impasse between the government and the Private Schools Supreme Council continued as the body stayed adamant on their decision to reopen educational institutions by January 11.

The agenda for today's meeting include:

Health updates on all provinces/regions by the national health services ministry
Reopening of educational institutions
School and education board exams slated to be held in May-June 2021
Reduction in spring and summer vacation and the start of the 2021-22 academic sessions
Implementation status of the Council of Common Interest's decision on the transfer of the existing NCHD and BECS schools, and the proposed national education policy.