§ 15. Julie MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made towards achieving universal primary education in south Asia. [178975]
Mr. Gareth ThomasSome progress towards universal primary education is being made in south Asia but this needs to be accelerated. In Bangladesh and India gross primary enrolment rates are above 100 per cent. but this is partly due to children repeating grades and the enrolment of under and over-age children.1014W Erratic data for Pakistan make it difficult to judge overall progress. More information is available in DFIDs Departmental report for 2004.