KARACHI, June 5: The Ministry of Science and Technology has allocated Rs38 million to hire the services of talented Pakistanis working in prestigious organizations abroad as well as foreign academicians.

“The Ministry of Science and Technology will hire the services of talented Pakistani scientists, engineers and foreign academicians working in prestigious institutions in foreign countries to meet the requirements of research and development organizations/universities in science and technology fields,” said an official statement here on Wednesday.

It said that under the Rs38 million project, the services of expatriate, foreign experts will be availed for a period of up to six months.

“There is an acute shortage of adequately qualified and experienced specialists in some important science and technology fields in the country. Whereas, there are many prominent Pakistani scientists and engineers working in top institutions in the developed countries who have excelled in their respective fields of specialization.

“Under the project, services of experts will be availed in cases where availing services of expatriate experts or foreign academicians for a duration of upto six months would meet the requirements of our research and development organizations/university departments in the priority fields”, the statement added.

It said that all such institutions/universities will submit their specific requirements to the ministry. The CVs of the experts and requirements of the institutes would be evaluated in the S&T division through peer review by a committee headed by its secretary.

The statement pointed out that the government would cover the cost of return air ticket and a suitable monthly allowance (Rs100,000 per month), whereas the host institution would be required to provide suitable accommodation and logistic facilities to the expert for the duration of their assignment.

It said that the host institution would also prepare a detailed programme of engagements for the expert and make every effort to faithfully follow this programme so that the time of the expert is fully utilized for the purpose for which it is arranged.

The priority areas of the project are: information technology, genetic engineering and biotechnology, material science, electronics, microelectronics and engineering.—APP