The Pakistani government has requested the Kingdom to authorize its embassy in Riyadh to manage Pakistani community schools and empower its ambassador to “hire and fire” school staff.
The recommendation came during the 10th session of a meeting held between members of the Pakistan-Saudi Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) in Riyadh, which concluded on Wednesday with an accord signed by Commerce and Industry Minister Tawfiq Al-Rabiah and visiting Pakistani Trade Minister, Khurram Dastgir Khan.
Pakistani community schools are currently under the supervision of the Ministry of Education, although a seven-member school management council handle the various day-to-day academic, financial and administrative policies.
There are around 10 Pakistani community schools across the Kingdom, including the Pakistan International School in Riyadh (PISR) and the Pakistan International School of Jeddah (PISJ).
Founded in 1958, the PISJ is one of the largest community-based schools in the Kingdom.
The PISR was established in 1968 under the permission of the late King Faisal to cater primarily for the Pakistani community in Riyadh.
The school functioned under the management of the Pakistani Armed Forces up until 1988 but was then taken over by the embassy, after which the management council was given comprehensive authority to run the school.
The Pakistani government has since requested that the country’s ambassador be the sole authority to run the show. The school is affiliated with the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education in Islamabad.
Syllabus and courses prescribed by the board are followed by local schools for examinations for the Secondary School Certificate (grades nine and 10) and Higher Secondary Certificate (grades 11 and 12).
