KARACHI, June 13: Sindh Governor, Mohammedmian Soomro, will host a meeting of all the four governors of the country on June 15, at the Governor’s House, to achieve common ground in the implementation of the recommendations finalized by the steering committee on higher education.

The steering committee, headed by Dr Shams Kassim Lakha, had met Governor Soomro on June 3. It was suggested at the meeting that the initiative should be extended to all the provinces, official sources said.

Provincial minister for education, Prof Anita Ghulam Ali; advisor to the governor, Abdul Wahab Shaikh; principal secretary to the governor, Akhtar Zamin; Prof Dr Zafar Saeed Saifi, VC Karachi University, Engineer Abul Kalam; VC NED University, Dr Abdul Rahman Memon; VC Mehran Engineering University, Dr Bashir Ahmed Chandio; VC Sindh Agriculture University, Tando Jam, Prof Jan Muhammad Memon; VC Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences, Jamshoro, Dr A.R. Malik; VC Shah Abdul Latif University, Khairpur, Danishmand; IBA director, Mazharul Haque Siddiqui and VC Sindh University, Jamshoro, and others attended the meeting.

Sources said that Dr Shams Kassim Lakha, while briefing the participants on the recommendations of the committee, said that they were based on an analysis of the current situation, which suggested that Pakistan lagged behind most developing countries in terms of virtually every indicator of higher education — enrolment ratios, government funding, research output and various estimates of educational quality.

The analysis led to the conclusion that the strengthening of universities and colleges required the allocation of significant additional funds by the government. However, in order to ensure that these resources are used effectively, the structures of the university administration and governance had to be rendered more transparent, efficient and accountable, he added.

Governor Soomro pointed out that Sindh had already introduced a number of reforms in this regard. For instance, it is the first province to introduce double-entry bookkeeping in all its public- sector universities. Moreover, in order to create the basis for true autonomy, the provincial government had started creating endowments for all public-sector universities, and the government as well as the alumni could fund them, he added.

The governor suggested that the chancellor should have the flexibility to choose any VC, rather than from a recommended panel.

Prof Anita promised that a task force on higher education, similar to the one established by the federal government, would be set up in Sindh to examine the outstanding issues of colleges and secondary education. She disclosed that Sindh has already decided that students of first-year science would be allowed to take both mathematics and biology, and opined that this principle could be extended downward to secondary education.

Some of the VCs expressed reservations on the proposed restructuring of universities, that include abolishing the syndicate and senate of the universities, saying they are working well and that they exist in all Commonwealth countries.

They also raised questions on the nomination process for various proposed committees and governing bodies in the universities, and possible political pressure from students and teachers, sources added.—PPI