LAHORE: The higher education administrators have demanded an increase in the education budget and complete autonomy for universities to enhance academic and administrative outcomes.

They were addressing a seminar on ‘Higher Education in Pakistan: Governance, Finance and Quality’, organised by the Punjab University’s Institute of Education and Research and Academia on Monday.

Higher Education Commission (HEC) Chairperson Prof Dr Mukhtar Ahmed, HEC former executive director Dr Sohail Naqvi, FAPUASA President Dr Amjad Abbas Magsi, IER Director Prof Dr Abdul Qayyum Chaudhry, PU State and Security DG Dr Rehan Sadiq Sheikh, Director Sports Dr Shabbir Sarwar, Ibrahim Qazi, faculty members and a large number of students were present.

Dr Mukhtar said self-accountability was necessary along with autonomy of universities for their overall development in a true manner. He said the higher education sector in Pakistan was facing issues like governance and quality which were related to financial matters.

He said many universities in Pakistan were facing difficulties to pay salaries and pensions, and even electricity bills.

He said teachers should focus on their responsibilities instead of negative politics to deal with these issues. He said only 0.22 per cent was being spent on higher education in Pakistan, for which the federal and provincial governments had to play a role in increasing the budget.

The HEC chairperson said universities should strictly follow the rules and regulations to improve the academic matters of affiliated colleges.

He said they should work together to increase the skills of the talented youth of Pakistan instead of blaming each other.

He said industrialists should also be made members of the academic council for changes in the curriculum according to the requirements of the modern era.

Dr Naqvi said annual publications in Pakistan had reached almost 40,000 but all were completely ineffective for the society.

He said the HEC had no role in the appointment of university vice chancellors. He said universities were a place for the community of scholars and a better system could be developed if the lawmakers and the implementers worked together.

He regretted that only 1.4 per cent of the GDP was being spent on education in Pakistan and the government should expend spending on education for better future of the country.

Dr Magsi said higher education in Pakistan had never faced so many problems at one time as it was facing now as most of the institutes did not have money to pay salaries and pensions.

He said no role of the HEC in the appointment of vice chancellors for universities across the country had proven to be harmful. He said all universities in Punjab and other provinces continued to work on an ad hoc basis without regular vice chancellors for more than two years and it had created financial and administrative problems.

He said governance, economy and quality could not improve without promoting merit and credibility.

He said the enactment of a legislation for the appointment of non-PhDs in Sindh universities was a regrettable act. He said attempts were being made to reduce the role of teachers in universities in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as well.He said there was no permanent chairman of PHEC for six months; this was also problematic for the higher education sector.

Dr Qayyum shed light on the history, educational and research activities of the IER and said promoting education according to modern requirements was the priority of the institution.

He said Times Higher Education had ranked the subject of education as the first in Pakistan in terms of subjects, which was the result of our best policies.

He said after the 18th Amendment, the responsibility of education had been entrusted to the provinces, but HEC and PHEC would have to establish strong links for the improvement of the education system.

Published in Dawn, February 11th, 2025