Higher education institutions: Govt urged to provide enabling environment

ISLAMABAD: Experts at a webinar while stressing the need for quality research-based education at graduate and post-graduate levels have urged the government to provide enabling environment to higher education institutions to produce skilful graduates.

Addressing the webinar, “Crisis of Graduate Education Pakistan & State of Universities”, organised by the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE),the vice-chancellors and the directors of various public-sector universities agreed that at present, the Pakistani universities are adding to the unemployed youths.

Vice-Chancellor (VC) PIDE Dr Nadeemul Haque stressed the need for holding seminars, webinars and consultative meetings both inside the campuses and outside the campuses for university students as well as for the students of other universities to share knowledge. He further said that majority of Pakistani universities are just producing graduates without having skills. He said that over 31 percent graduates in Pakistan are unemployed which is an alarming situation.

He said that the government never asked any university to conduct a research on any developmental project, adding that all the consultants and researchers are hired from outside the universities which are a really sad state of affairs.

Haque said that bringing science to our countries needs an attitude towards science. He said the country needs to have a holistic approach to collect knowledge, adding that the science culture can bring science, that needs to be developed. He lamented that we want science without cultural change. He said that we have to learn to create ideas, just copying would not help.

He suggested creating a vibrant culture of exchange, creating networks of exchange and establishing clubs where experts come and exchange ideas.

Haque said when I see no consultations of governments with the universities, I feel like there is no demand of science in our cultures. He suggested we need to develop expert data analysts and make indigenous policies.

Professor Jonathan taking part in the debate said that he had remained associated with the PIDE during the 1980s and was currently working in America where Pakistani students at different levels are doing very well.

Vice-Chancellor Allama Iqbal Open (AIOU) Dr Ziaul Qayyum, while agreeing to the point that Pakistan was not producing good graduates said that some 23 years ago, a total of 53 universities were operating in Pakistan which now has reached 200. He said that during these 23 years the country did not focus on facility development but increased the number of universities.

The country has no data what the number of engineers and doctors the country will need in the next 20 years, therefore, the authorities must focus on research to address the future problems.

Professor Hasan Shah, former VC GC University, Lahore, said that 25 years ago situation of research in Pakistani universities was not up to the global mark but now the situation has changed but overall there are some serious challenges in connection with research on various subjects and matters. He said that there is a significant room available to improve the situation.

Professor Naeem, VC Gilgit-Baltistan University, Sakardu said that producing simple graduates without certain skills is simply adding to unemployment. He said that universities must also focus on skill development among the youth, so that they can play their role in society building. He further said that the higher education institutes need to focus on modern education instead of teaching dated theories to the youth.

Moreover, there is a need for universities to come out of bureaucratic models as graduates prefer to become police inspectors instead of becoming professors or teachers as being a police officer is more attractive as compared to becoming a teacher.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022