Govt to transform country’s educational system: Mamnoon

ISLAMABAD: Reiterating commitment of the present government to promoting quality education at all levels, President Mamnoon said Monday that the education sector was not only a government’s priority but was being treated as a national emergency with focus on developing an educational system compatible with the requirements of a knowledge-based economy.

“The country needs skilled, highly educated and motivated youths to compete in the present global environment and keep Pakistan progressing on the path of development”, President Mamnoon noted.

During a meeting with a group of vice chancellors and rectors of the leading universities of the country, at Aiwan-e-Sadr, he said that well-educated and trained youth could convert all prevalent challenges into opportunities. The heads of universities who called on the president include Vice Admiral (R) Shahid Iqbal, Rector of Bahria University, Islamabad; Imran Rahman, Vice Chancellor, Institute of Space Technology, Islamabad; Dr Muhammad Aslam, Rector Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Islamabad; Prof Javed Akram, Vice Chancellor, Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University, Islamabad and Prof Dr Ali Asghar Chishti, Acting Vice Chancellor, Allama Iqbal Open University, Islamabad.

Engineer Syed Imtiaz Hussain Gilani, Chairperson of Higher Education Commission (HEC) and Prof Dr Mukhtar Ahmed, Executive Director were also present during the meeting.On the occasion, the president stressed the need for the universities and educational institutions to maintain the spirit of excellence and generate new avenues of sustainable growth with focus on developing a knowledge-based economy. He said that in today’s era of technological development where technological innovations and new scientific knowledge were becoming prime divers of economic progress, the role of universities had become even more critical.

The president urged upon the heads of the institutions to rise to the globally changing environment, make pace with the global scientific and technological development and play its critical role in the human, social and economic development of Pakistan.