A child’s right to education entails access to learning. However, an estimated 22.8 million children aged 5-16 in Pakistan are out of school. Hence, creating a massive social divide in the country.
Without quality education and access to digital services, children face considerable barriers to employment which resultantly threaten their ability to shape a better future for themselves and the country as a whole.
Over the last 15 years, Pakistan’s leading telecommunication company, Zong 4G has stepped up to reduce the digital divide in the country. The company has strived to play its role in promoting equal and fair education opportunities to all regions, whether they be rural or urban, along with constantly finding new ways to innovate and digitize the process as much as possible.
On the account of International Day of Education, 24th January, Zong 4G pledges to ensure inclusivity and equality in access to digital education. International Day of Education, is declared by the UN as a day to promote and fight for unbiased and easy access to education for all. Fair and equal education across the board is an absolute necessity for countries to be able to fight and eradicate mass poverty and gender discrimination along with many other issues that society faces.
Zong 4G has carried out numerous projects centered around Education and the Implementation of Digital Education to reduce the social and digital divide in access to educational services in most areas of the country. Zong 4G has executed effective and innovative initiatives toward the empowerment of the community through education. They have partnered with organizations including PAGE, PBM and HANDs to set up digital labs in far-flung areas of the country.
Moreover, the company has prioritized ensuring that marginalized strata especially girls schools in areas like Gwadar have access to digital services, to come at par with global standards. Furthermore, Zong 4G has set up over 6 Digital Labs and continues to work towards establishing more. The company has aligned itself with prestigious educational institutes such as LUMS (Lahore University of Management Sciences) for the development of a state-of-the-art 4G research lab at the university and NUST (National University of Science & Technology) for youth development initiatives such as Model United Nations and Youth Leaders’ Conferences.
Zong 4G’s educational endeavors have not only been focused on improving primary & secondary education but also focused on skill-based learning that would help directly in career building. They partnered with PSDF (Punjab Skills Development Fund) to administer 10,000+ courses on e-Lancing through platforms such as Fiverr and Upwork which would enable the participants to build a freelancing career.
Believing that Pakistan’s tech-savvy youth is the country’s future, Zong 4G has taken it upon itself to educate young minds on future technologies like IoT and AI. The company conducted online sessions at Bahria University and NUST through its Link-Up solution for future technologies, IoT and One-Net Solutions. Moreover, Zong 4G is building an “Information Highway” with support from its parent company, China Mobile Communication Corporation (CMCC), the largest telecommunications services provider in the world.
Additionally, Zong 4G has carried out sessions on Digital Learning with the children of SOS Villages in Sialkot and most recently in Muzaffarabad which included preparing them for freelancing as well. They also encouraged the children to enroll in Digi Skills program by Ministry of IT, for free Digital learning programs and certifications online. Zong 4G also partnered with Huawei and the AKHUWAT Foundation to provide and promote digital education in schools by donating two hundred digital tablets to students of marginalized communities.
As Zong 4G celebrates its 15 years in Pakistan, it reaffirms its commitment towards enhancing education in Pakistan and on the International Day of Education, 2023, pledges to continue working towards excelling the quality and number of educational opportunities available to the youth of the country.