The Punjab government envisions 100% school enrolment target by 2018 and no child will remain without education by then, said Shehbaz Sharif on Friday.The Punjab chief minister presided over a high-level meeting to discuss measures taken to promote education and continuing educational programmes.“Our progress and development depends on imparting latest education to the youth,” Shehbaz said while addressing the participants, including ministers Rana Mashhood Ahmed Khan, Syed Ali Gillani, adviser Dr Umer Saif, Punjab Education Foundation Chairman Qamarus Salam, the additional chief secretary, and secretaries of different departments.He claimed the attendance of teachers at public schools had increased due to the revolutionary measures taken by the government. “Hundred percent school enrolment target will achieved by 2018 and no child will remain deprived of education by then,” he added.Keeping in mind its targets, the government has provided basic facilities at 52,000 schools at a cost of Rs40 billion. Another Rs16 billion have been spent on the reconstruction of dilapidated school buildings and 36,000 new classrooms.About 2.2 million students are getting education under the voucher scheme of Punjab Education Foundation while students also get free books every year at government schools. Another 87,000 children working at brick kilns have been enrolled in schools and free books, bags, uniforms and monthly scholarship of Rs1,000 is being provided to them.Female students of Matriculation are getting monthly scholarships of Rs1,000 in 16 districts for which about Rs4 billion are spent every year. About 462,000 students are benefitting from this programme.Solar lamps have been provided to 300,000 students while about 20,000 schools will be converted to run on solar energy during the current fiscal year.Shehbaz said school labs have been constructed at 6,000 schools while laptops have been given to thousands of students to help them in their education. He added more laptops would be distributed in the current year while tablets would be provided at schools.“Merit and transparency have been promoted in Punjab in every field and 220,000 teachers have been recruited on merit,” he said, adding that 80,000 more teachers will be recruited this year.Shehbaz said excellent programmes have been launched for high-achieving students and they would be sent abroad for studying at foreign universities on scholarships. “The exceptional feature of educational programmes in Punjab is that students of all federating units have their due share,” he claimed.Published in The Express Tribune, April 8, 2017.