SWABI, Aug 22: Federal Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz has termed sophisticated strategic capability and vibrant economy vital to meeting all confronting challenges, saying that Pakistan has been strengthened in both these sectors and now nobody can threaten its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Speaking at the induction ceremony of the 13th batch of Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology here on Friday, he said health economy could be strengthened with good education while stressing to achieve a breakthrough in the field of technology, education and defence.

The minister said the economic stability continued unabated and next year Pakistan would be able to free itself from the debt burden.

He said that if we imparted quality education to youngsters, continued efforts for strengthening economy and modernize our defence capability, we could meet every challenge in the world.

“We are living in a globalized world with the increasing degree of competition. It is an era which has brought opportunities but, at the same time, it is posing serious challenges to those nations who failed to participate effectively in the process of globalization,” he said, adding that we could not avoid the globalization.

Evidences, he said, showed that the globalization had brought profound economic and social changes over the last two decades, especially in the Asean countries. He said: “More than two decades of sustained economic growth, particularly in East Asia, has raised the living standard of many people more rapidly than any other time in the history.”

He said that due to investments and sound macroeconomic policies, the East Asian countries had gained much more benefits from the globalization.

In this era of globalization, he said, there must be adequate investments, appropriate policies and supporting institutions to ensure technological capability.

Today’s world, he said, demanded high-tech engineering and only the nations that acquired it would be able to get an honourable place in the comity of nations. We needed high-class engineers who could apply their minds and knowledge to achieve Pakistan’s peculiar technological requirements.

“We also need advanced and sophisticated technology. No country will ever transfer us the technology. Either we remain dependent on whatever others may offer or develop our own indigenous technology to achieve the desired objectives in the field of technology.” We needed a core of highly-trained engineers, scientists, chartered accountants, bankers, management experts and business executives who could facilitate absorption of new technology and innovation and transfer it to demotic firms.

The finance minister said the government was paying special attention to the advancement of higher education and devised plans to increase the number of PhDs.

He stressed the youngsters to benefit from the opportunities that the institutes/universities of the country offered them and equip themselves for the challenges of the future.

Urging on the 200 freshmen of the institute, the minister said: “The young students of today will be the builders of Pakistan tomorrow. The freshmen of the present will become the elite competent workforce in future. Our future, therefore, will depend on how well we train this workforce.”

He said that with faith in your mission and a will to work, you (freshmen) could achieve great things in life. “I have no doubt that the GIK Institute is fully capable of producing the kind of scientists and engineers required for the 21st century,” he said, adding that the institute had won acclaim for providing a better and superior brand of engineers who had worked with distinction at national and international level.

“I would urge private sector to follow the footsteps of the GIK Institute,” he said.

The minister also awarded certificates to the participants of an international workshop on “Energy Efficiency for Green Productivity”, organized by the institute and sponsored by the Islamic Development Bank.

In his address of welcome, institute rector Prof Dr Muhammad Naseer Khan said the institute had capacity to increase the number of students at the undergraduate and graduate level, but the lack of hostel was a serious constraint.

He said the institutes like GIK institute deserved help from all quarters to enable them maintain the high standard of teaching and research.

He paid tributes to Ghulam Ishaq Khan for establishing the institute.

The central general secretary of the PML-Q, Saleem Saifullah Khan, and senator Mrs Tanveer also attended the ceremony.