PM inaugurates 30-acre Daanish School in Islamabad, pledges quality education for all

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday inaugurated the Daanish School in Islamabad, reaffirming his commitment to providing quality education to underprivileged children and ensuring that financial hardship should not deprive talented students of opportunities to succeed.

Addressing the inauguration ceremony, the prime minister said the country’s talented young people had extraordinary potential but were often held back by a lack of financial resources.

The emotional accounts of students who had struggled to continue their education before securing admission to the school moved the prime minister and other participants to tears.

“Today, I stand before you not as the prime minister but as a genuine servant,” Shehbaz said, stressing that access to quality education and equal opportunities was essential for the country’s future.

He said many hardworking parents earned their livelihoods in extreme weather but could not afford their children’s education and healthcare because of limited incomes.

As a result, he added, talented children from disadvantaged families often could not even imagine studying at prestigious institutions such as Aitchison College.

“No talented child should be deprived of quality education because of financial difficulties,” the prime minister said, emphasising that young people could help Pakistan achieve international recognition through their abilities and hard work.

360 students admitted on merit

During a briefing, the prime minister was informed that the Islamabad Daanish School had been built on 30 acres and had begun classes for students in grades six, seven and eight.

A total of 360 talented boys and girls from different areas had been admitted purely on merit, with 120 students in each grade, according to the briefing.

The school has recruited 38 teachers, with the teaching staff to be expanded according to requirements.

The campus has separate academic blocks for boys and girls, each featuring 24 classrooms. The facilities include information technology, science and robotics laboratories, an e-library and an art room.

The institution is intended to provide students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds with access to modern educational facilities and opportunities to develop their academic and practical skills.

Students recount struggles to pursue education

The prime minister listened to accounts from students who described the financial difficulties their families had faced in trying to secure a better future for them.

Zahid Gul, a student from Kurram, said he was delighted to have secured admission to the Islamabad Daanish School, where he could access quality education, science laboratories and sports facilities.

He said paying the fees at a private school in the former Kurram Agency had been difficult because his elderly father had no other source of income.

Zahid said his brother earned a living by herding other people’s sheep and goats, while he used to sell scrap on Sundays to meet his educational expenses. Despite these hardships, he said, he had consistently secured positions in his class.

The prime minister embraced the student and encouraged him to continue working hard.

Aiman Ali Gul, another student, recalled how her father had urged her to achieve something meaningful in life despite the family’s limited resources.

She said the lack of facilities had sometimes left her disheartened, but securing admission to the Daanish School had brought happiness to her father, who had long hoped to see her receive a good education.

“Seeing the Daanish School, I felt that my father’s dream had come true,” she said, thanking the prime minister for the opportunity.

Aiman said she was overwhelmed with happiness at having reached such a large stage to share her story. She also emphasised that all children attending the ceremony were Pakistanis, regardless of their backgrounds.

The students’ accounts underscored the financial barriers faced by children from low-income households in pursuing education.

Shehbaz recalls vision behind Daanish Schools

The prime minister said the Daanish Schools initiative was launched in 2010 to provide children from disadvantaged families with educational opportunities comparable to those available to more privileged students.

He said the programme was designed to reach talented children in remote areas, including Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, who might otherwise struggle to access quality education.

Recalling the story of a talented girl from Bahawalpur, Shehbaz said she had overcome considerable difficulties to pursue her studies and had gone on to become a doctor serving humanity.

He described such achievements as evidence of the potential of children who needed opportunities and support to fulfil their ambitions.

The prime minister said the objective was not simply to establish educational institutions but to enable disadvantaged children to develop their abilities and contribute to society.

Education minister calls it a historic day

Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui described the inauguration as a historic occasion.

He said institutions such as Daanish Schools were needed to turn knowledge into wisdom and provide future generations with opportunities for learning, research and development.

He expressed hope that future generations would regard the opening of the Islamabad school as an important first step towards achieving broader educational goals.

Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan, chairman of the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme, said Shehbaz had established a foundation for scholarships and the Punjab Daanish Authority during his tenure as chief minister of Punjab.

He said the authority was now operating as the Pakistan Daanish Authority, while scholarships and laptop schemes had also been introduced to support talented students.

Government plans wider expansion

The Islamabad school is part of a broader initiative to extend the Daanish Schools model to more parts of the country.

In July, the prime minister directed the Daanish Authority to ensure the timely completion of schools under construction and called for information technology, artificial intelligence and robotics training to become part of the curriculum. The government said 29 schools were proposed across the country, with 15 approved and construction under way at 13 locations at the time of the announcement.

The initiative aims to expand access to quality education for talented students from disadvantaged backgrounds, including those living in remote and underserved areas.

The opening of the Islamabad school marks another step in that effort, with the experiences of its newly admitted students highlighting both the barriers that poverty can create and the opportunities that access to education can provide.