HEC becomes a role model for other countries

Speakers at a dialogue on higher education have called for attaching priority to education and strengthening the institutions like Higher Education Commission (HEC), which is key to achieve the goal of national development. They were speaking at Hamdard Thinkers Forum at a discussion held on the topic of "Higher Education Commission and Future of Higher Education" here at Hamdard Centre.
Writer-cum-politician Bushra Rehman presided over the function. Director General Higher Education Commission Zia Batool was Chief Guest, while among others Dr Rafiq Ahmed, Professor Dr Mughees-ud-Din Sheikh, Professor Humayun Ehsan, Professor Abdul Rasheed Kausar, Akbar Javed, Professor Dr Zafar Mohammad Noon spoke on the occasion and highlighted the role of HEC has played in improvising Pakistan's image to the world besides opening doors of opportunities to the bright and talented people of the country.
Speaking on the occasion, Director General Higher Education Commission Zia Batool said that the world today recognise that higher education is central to national development. She said the establishment of the HEC has revolutionised higher education in Pakistan and this has been recognised internationally for the transformation that has occurred in Pakistani universities located in every corner of the country. She said the HEC is considered as role model in other countries and it is being followed there. She said unnecessary debate was initiated on the status of HEC, which was not part of the 18th Constitutional Amendment. As per interpretation of legal experts, HEC is part of Federal list I and II, hence it needs to be treated as a core subject at the federal level.
Highlighting the achievements of HEC, she said the number of higher educational institutions has increased from 71 to 137 during the last nine years, while scholarships for PhD has raised from 1500 to 8000 raising the budgetary allocation to 803 million.
Professor Humayun Ehsan said that higher education is not a subject that is confined to national boundaries since it is imperative to have international recognition of degrees for which adherence to International Quality Assurance Benchmarks is a necessity.
Professor Dr Mughees-ud-Din Sheikh said on the occasion that the issue of the Higher Education Commission must be dealt with the collective wisdom. "Education at every level must be managed by the centre, as curricula and the educational system's disparity may result negative consequences on the promotion of the education in the country. Centralisation of the education is not contrary to the provincial autonomy," he said.