Peshawar:The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government on Thursday completed all arrangements to provide free textbooks to students across the province for the upcoming 2025-26 academic session.
The announcement was made during a review meeting chaired by the Provincial Minister for Education, Faisal Khan.
According to official statement, 33.96 million textbooks would be distributed at the start of the academic year, with an estimated cost of Rs 4.9 billion.
In a significant cost-saving measure, 50 percent of the books would be reused, reducing financial pressure on the government, it said adding that this initiative aligned with the government’s commitment to ensuring education for all.
Speaking on the occasion, the Education Minister said that reforms in textbook printing and distribution had resulted in a savings of Rs 2.2 billion this year.
He commended the Textbook Board for their effective planning and timely execution.
He said that KP government was determined to provide uninterrupted education faciliti
es to every child in the province, adding that the reuse of textbooks and timely distribution had reduced the dropout rate in schools, with more children now enrolling in government schools.
Earlier the meeting discussed the demand for books across various regions. It was informed during the meeting that 5.2 million books were required for merged districts,
3.4 million for settled districts and over 2.3 million for the Elementary and Secondary Education Foundation.
Chairman of the Textbook Board, Fara Saqlain, requested the minister for payment of outstanding dues of over two billion rupees with the Finance Department.
The education minister assured to take up the issue with the finance for really release of funds.
He reiterated the government’s resolve to make education accessible for all and remove all hurdles in this connection.