The writer is a senior research fellow at the Institute of Development and Economic Alternatives, and an associate professor of economics at Lums. BY some estimates, some 20 million-plus five- to 16-year-olds are out of school in Pakistan. This is 11 years after the inclusion of Article 25-A on the right to education in the Constitution. This change came in April 2010 through the 18th Constitutional Amendment. But neither the federation nor any of the provinces has done a lot to implement this ‘basic right’ in their respective jurisdictions. When we say that none of the governments responsible for the provision of education has done a lot over the last 11 years to implement Article 25-A, we mean that none of the governments has a) given roadmaps for how the implementation will happen and by when all children will be in school; b) legislated and/or approved rules for the implementation of Article 25-A; c) allocated funds for implementation; d) shared plans or strategies on how all these children are to be educated.