PESHAWAR: Body to review educational institutions’ accounts
By Sadia Qasim Shah
PESHAWAR, Nov 8: The NWFP government is planning to strengthen the Higher Education Regulatory Authority (Hera), empowering it to audit the accounts of public- and private-sector educational institutions.
Proposals for making the Hera an effective body are being reviewed by the provincial law department. Once the recommendations are approved, ways to implement them will be decided upon, according to officials.
A committee constituted in January to identify the weaknesses in Hera operations submitted its report about two months ago to the NWFP chief secretary, who forwarded it to the-then chief minister Akram Khan Durrani.
The recommendations envisage a better role for the Hera, with a focus on monitoring of educational institutions. The Hera should devise a monitoring mechanism for determining the number of annual inspections needed for universities, colleges, schools and other institutions.
According to the proposals, the minimum standards for the educational institutions should be formulated. During inspections it will be determined if the educational institution in question has met the standards or not.
The authority should also check the availability of the required number of qualified teachers and certificate of recognition from the Higher Education Commission, Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PMDC) or Pakistan Engineering Council. The authority should also be empowered to check the fee structure of the institutions, the committee recommended.
The committee also recommended that the Hera be given the authority to check the educational institutions’ accounts in order to ensure transparency in the utilisation of government funds.
It proposed that the Hera should present its annual report to the chief minister through the higher education department by December 30 each year, detailing the overall performance and the financial and administrative efficiency. The annual report should also mention the number of private sector educational institutions monitored and the outcome of each activity.
The provincial government had asked for recommendations after expressing dissatisfaction with the performance of the Hera, as it had failed to achieve the objectives for which it was set up in 2002, an official said.
“The staff should be impartial and competent in both academic and administrative matters so that the authority achieves its objectives,” the summary said.
