ISLAMABAD: Higher Education Commission (HEC) Chairman Dr Mukhtar Ahmed on Thursday said despite the fact that the higher education sector was confronted with challenges of governance, quality assurance and shortage of funding, it was making progress.

Speaking at a press conference at the HEC headquarters, Mr Ahmed urged all stakeholders, including university leadership, faculty and relevant government departments, to take immediate steps to address the governance issues of public-sector universities, which had ultimately affected the quality of education and research.

“Let us be very clear about it. More we focus on improving governance mechanisms of our higher learning institutions, more will it enhance the quality of education and research and also resolve the financial challenges that many universities are grappling with,” he said.

Dr Mukhtar further said despite these challenges, “the higher education sector has shown remarkable performance in the last two decades”.

Says despite challenges, higher education sector making progress

“Since its inception in 2002, HEC has made strenuous efforts to focus on all areas important for development of higher education be it faculty development, promotion of research, technological readiness, quality assurance policies, infrastructure development, international collaboration, university sports, etc,” he added.

He appreciated the government for taking care of this important sector in the annual budget, but more resources wee required.

“Funding of higher education sector is stagnant for the last many years while the number of universities has been increasing quite rapidly. I appreciate the Sindh government for providing a substantial amount to the provincial universities in addition to the federal grant. We will request other provinces to follow suit and provide a good share of funding to the universities,” he said.

The HEC chairman said an ecosystem had been developed for our universities to grow in a holistic manner and compete with the rest of the world.

He said despite financial challenges, there was no lack of funding for research and country’s researchers only need to focus on the right areas that have a direct impact on society and economy.

The chairman said groundwork had been done to make the country’s higher education technologically ready for the future. “We may not be the best in technology readiness, but I can assure you that we are making all preparations that our faculty and students require for the swiftly changing digital age. Our IT team is carrying out an extensive plan to update the systems in such a manner that our higher education community can easily go along with rest of the world,” he claimed.

“We continuously engage with all the stakeholders to ensure that policies are made in time and as per requirement of the society, country’s economic needs and as per international best practices. Our undergraduate and graduate education policies provide a strong foundation for universities to offer best quality degree programmes.

HEC is also focusing on all accreditation related matters including opening of new institutions as well as offering professional degree programmes, he said.

The chairman also said the issue of funding already enrolled students in foreign universities and sending new students on scholarships had also been resolved, adding that the HEC had funds but due to shortage of foreign exchange, the commission faced little issue, which was settled now as finance ministry has given it a go-ahead, he said.

Highlighting achievements in sports, Dr Mukhtar Ahmed said many players who had been trained at HEC platform were now performing in national and international championships and bringing laurels for the country.

Addressing concerns about rising educational costs, the chairman said while controlling university fees was beyond HEC’s jurisdiction, the commission remained committed to facilitating institutions through policies, funding and scholarships.

Published in Dawn, October 11th, 2024