The Elementary and Secondary Education Department of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has issued a strict directive to all education boards in the province, barring students enrolled in private high and higher secondary schools that are not registered with the KP Private Schools Regulatory Authority (KP-PSRA) from appearing in matriculation and intermediate board examinations.
Officials identified 387 unregistered private schools that remain affiliated with eight education boards across KP, including merged districts. Despite lacking official registration, these schools had continued to enroll students for board exams.
Of the unregistered institutions, 196 are affiliated with the Peshawar Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, 100 with the Swat Board, 47 with the Mardan Board, 10 with the Malakand Board, four with the Dera Ismail Khan Board, 15 with the Abbottabad Board, and 12 with the Bannu Board.
The Education Department has instructed boards to immediately de-affiliate these schools and prevent their students from sitting in upcoming matriculation and intermediate examinations. Under Section 21 of the KP-PSRA Act, 2017, no private school can operate in the province without registration, regardless of its board affiliation.
KP-PSRA has already registered 11,587 private schools in the province. Authorities said formal de-affiliation proceedings for unregistered schools will commence after approval from the Chief Minister.