ISLAMABAD, Nov 14 (APP):Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Tuesday underlined the need of bringing the higher education in the country in conformity with the contemporary and economic needs.
He further stressed for introduction of scholarships in technical and scientific subjects in accordance with the global requirements.
The prime minister chaired a meeting regarding the Higher Education Commission (HEC). The meeting was attended by Caretaker Minister for Federal Education and Professional Training Madad Ali Sindhi, HEC Chairman Dr Mukthar Ahmed, secretary education and other senior officials, the PM Office Media Wing said in a press release.
The prime minister was briefed about the higher education, students’ scholarships, universities, and other related issues.
He was apprised that a total of 259 higher education institutes in the country were recognized by the HEC whereas in the previous years, the number of universities of global standards had increased in Pakistan.
So far, more than 20,000 scholarships had been awarded for PhD since the inception of HEC, it was added.
The meeting was also informed about the formulated mechanism to control plagiarism in the educational sector.
The caretaker prime minister was also given a briefing about the national and international scholarships.
The prime minister directed for submission of a complete report regarding the outcome of government-funded scholarships, besides asked for removal of hurdles faced by the Pakistani students, studying abroad, in getting the release of scholarships.
He observed that for promotion of human and technical resources, they would have to extend facility of stipends in the science and engineering subjects.
The caretaker prime minister was also given a briefing on the formulated strategy between the academia and the industry for a joint collaboration.
The prime minister directed the relevant authorities to chalk out a mechanism for getting funding from the IT (information technology) and pharmaceutical industries for carrying out research.
He also asked for holding of a joint meeting of all the provincial authorities to resolve the issues related to education.
Provision of international standard education was critical for the country’s development, he stressed and directed for training programmes for the skilled manpower in the country, particularly for nurses.
He observed that the country’s workforce was a huge asset and through trained manpower, they could carve a place in the international market.
The prime minister was also apprised about the measures taken by the HEC in the IT sector which included establishment of the latest data centers in Lahore and Karachi, use of the latest super computer and other porgrammes.
