ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal has directed the Higher Education Commission (HEC) to create a comprehensive framework for a cutting-edge performance management system for universities in order to encourage the higher education sector to play a key role in the socio-economic growth of the nation.
The minister gave the directives while chairing a meeting held to review the progress of the framework for institutional performance audit of public sector universities here on Thursday.
The meeting was attended by the officials of the HEC, Member Science and Technology, Planning Commission, and other stakeholders.
The planning minister directed the HEC to ensure quality standards in the higher education sector in light of the seven parameters i.e. academic quality (teaching and learning) and curricula, research, innovation, and entrepreneurship, academia-industry linkage, technology infrastructure and enablement, corporate governance, audit and finance, community service and engagement and graduate quality and employability.
The development of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for each standard was another point made by him.
He underlined that the institutional initiatives should be focused on fostering effective community service and involvement by modifying their teaching and learning methods so that students and teachers can participate in helping to address the urgent local and global concerns and difficulties.
He said that universities should provide opportunities for students to develop soft skills such as communication, teamwork, leadership, and problem-solving. Soft skills are essential for success in the workplace and can help graduates stand out to potential employers.
Furthermore, he said that the Universities should establish partnerships with industry partners to promote collaboration and knowledge exchange.
Universities should establish sound financial management practices that ensure the responsible use of financial resources, he added.
“We must help our universities catch up to the top institutions worldwide,” he said.
In another meeting, the minister reviewed the progress of IT training and certification programmes run by the HEC. The major objective of the meeting is to improve certification programmes by developing a comprehensive structure.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023