Higher Education in Pakistan: A Silent Revolution

	By Atta-ur-Rahman We now live in a world in which knowledge has become the key driver for socio- economic development. Only those countries who invest in their human resources, tap into the creativity of their young, and harness their potential for development will be able to march forward.   Stunning advances made in the last few decades in the fields of information technology, biotechnology, material sciences, health sciences, renewable energy, and other disciplines are rapidly changing the face of the globe, leading several countries toward the path of social and economic development and leaving others behind. The pace of knowledge generation and its impact on new product and process development and emergence of new interdisciplinary areas, e.g. nanotechnology and post- genomic sciences, are providing opportunities for nations not traditionally associated with science leadership to leapfrog many of the advanced G8 countries. These emerging fields have provided opportunities for nations which were not traditionally classified as scientifically and technologically advanced countries. New knowledge, particularly knowledge related to technology, drives economic systems. Economic agents, including firms and governments, are forced to adapt to technical change in order to survive in a competitive environment. While governments should act as facilitators, technology capabilities must accumulate in enterprises. This will only be possible if we strengthen our universities and research and development organizations and create effective linkages between them and industry. It will be the increasing use of knowledge in the production processes and service industry which will determine the growth of our GDP. Our ability to compete or survive in the globalization of economic systems depends on our commitment to developing our human capital and ensuring a continuous learning process within the government institutions and enterprises to create a culture of innovation. Innovation is concerned with enhancing national productivity and national competitive performance.  Dynamic innovation systems involve an interplay between a number of different parts of society which include the government, private sector, universities, and research institutions. The transition of our economy from an agriculture-based economy to a knowledge-based economy involves a mosaic of complex interactions between a large number of players.  Universities will need to play a central part in this transition through the creation, use, and diffusion of new knowledge into the society through the establishment of technology parks, business incubators, access to venture capital, and other such schemes. The new world order requires us to prepare our children to face the challenges of the global economy. This involves a substantially different type of education to be imparted, focused not only on the mastery of subject matters but also on the ability to think critically, innovate, communicate, work effectively in teams, and develop entrepreneurship opportunities and flexibility. This would require a massive focused national effort. While investment towards development of high level science and technology manpower is necessary to meet the critical shortage of teachers and researchers, investment in skill development at technical education and management levels and provision of quality education to the majority of our population is equally important. The Role of Higher Education in Pakistan Established in September 2002, the core function of Higher Education Commission (HEC) is to facilitate the transformation of Pakistan into a knowledge economy.  Since its inception, the HEC has undertaken a systematic process of implementation of an agenda for reform outlined in the HEC Medium Term Development Framework (MTDF), in which Access, Quality and Relevance have been identified as the key challenges faced by the sector. To address these challenges, a comprehensive strategy was defined that identified the core strategic aims for reform as: (i) Faculty Development; (ii) Improving Access; (iii) Excellence in Learning and Research; and (iv) Relevance to National Priorities. Faculty Development With a dual objective of increasing institutional capacity and enhancing local research activities, the major thrust of programs in the area of human resource development has been primarily aimed at improving the academic qualifications of the university faculty. Key programs include the Indigenous Scholarship Program, under which so far 2,000 scholarships for doctoral studies have been awarded with steps to ensure international standards of quality. The Foreign Scholarship Program is geared towards improving the research base in areas of national relevance, particularly those relating to engineering and applied and pure sciences.  The majority of the scholars have studied in Germany, France, Austria, Sweden, Netherlands, Korea, and China, with others in the U.S., UK, Australia, and New Zealand. So far more than 821 scholarships have been awarded to students to pursue Masters and Ph.D. degrees abroad.  A $250 million project to further fund 2000 students for study abroad has been recently approved by the Government of Pakistan. The largest Fulbright Scholarship Program in the world, costing $150 million, has also been launched with U.S. assistance, under which 640 students will study in top American universities. Another 500 students will study in Australia under the Australia Pakistan Scholarship Program. Additionally, a program to fund Post Doctoral Fellowships has been successfully completed, placing more than 255 scholars for 9-12 month fellowships in premier academic and research institutions abroad.  Pakistan will be rewarded for these scholarship initiatives when students return after completing Ph.D.s and perpetuate the culture of research in our universities.  To cater to the immediate needs of qualified personnel in our public sector universities, HEC has implemented the Foreign Faculty Hiring Program to recruit highly qualified faculty members from abroad, both on short and long term appointments. So far over 270 foreign faculty members have participated in this program, about 140 of whom are engaged under the long-term scheme of one to five years. In-service teachers have been supported through one and three month faculty development training modules focused on improvement in pedagogy, enhancement of communication and computer skills, advanced assessment methodologies, and enhancement of subject knowledge. More than 340 faculty members have benefited from this program, which aims to train all active faculty members during the next three years. An additional 430 faculty members have attended short term subject specific training sessions to upgrade their skills relevant to their chosen field.  Additional Master’s training courses, conducted at the HEC over the past two years, have trained more than 2,500 university teachers. Improving Access In the context of an ever-increasing population and spiraling economic demands, enhancing accessibility and participation in higher education remains an important goal for us. A massive program was launched to increase the number of seats available in the universities. As a result enrolment in universities has increased by over 40 percent while distance learning programs show an increase of 19 percent. Increased enrolments require enhanced facilities for students. New projects have therefore been initiated for construction of new academic and research infrastructure, hiring new faculty members, and introduction of market oriented programs to attract new entrants.  Thirteen new universities have been granted charters, mostly in areas where higher education opportunities were hitherto scarce.  Moreover, through the implementation of the indigenous Ph.D. program, the number of students engaged in Ph.D. programs has increased 56 percent. Promotion of Excellence in Learning and Research The generation of new knowledge and efficient dissemination of existing knowledge is a key responsibility of institutions of higher learning. Universities differ from colleges as they have the obligation to foster a research environment and provide facilities to ensure that research enterprise is sufficiently integrated with industry.  To support the conduct of world class research, more than 20 Central Research Laboratories have been established in major universities of the country. The improved facilities are supported by sophisticated IT-based solutions to cater to the research needs. The flagship Competitive Research Program has funded over 333 research programs following a comprehensive peer review process. Additional programs have been implemented to sponsor the attendance of international conferences to researchers presenting original papers as well as initiatives to fund the hosting of local workshops and conferences. The University Linkage Program has been launched to promote enhanced international research collaboration by linking departments in Pakistani universities with their counterparts in leading research universities abroad. Through a collaborative arrangement with the British Council, 50 such linkages have been initiated between Pakistani and British universities. The generation of knowledge at the university level and creation of new programs introduced by HEC has already begun to make an impact on research productivity. According to the Institute of Scientific Information (US), the total number of publications appearing in 8,000 leading internationally abstracted journals indexed in the Web of Science produced out of Pakistan in 2005 was 1259 articles, representing a 41 % increase over the past two years, and a 60 % increase since the establishment of HEC since 2002. Relevance to the Economy and Industrial Linkages The programs of the HEC have targeted the development of necessary manpower to allow the economy of Pakistan to transition towards a knowledge based economy.  Significant assistance has been provided to the engineering sector, by allocating funds to strengthen of current departments, initiate new programs, establish additional campuses, and develop central resource laboratories.  A second major support initiative has been launched in the critical area of biotechnology, with institutes set up in bio-informatics, proteomics, stem cell research, plant genomics and genetic engineering. Quality Assurance and Accreditation We are placing a particular focus on the institution of quality enhancement, assurance, and accreditation mechanisms at universities across the country, with the aim of achieving parity with international standards of quality of higher learning.  Sustainable improvement in the delivery of higher education requires the development of a mechanism for continuous self-monitoring and improvement of the system.  The HEC has established a Quality Assurance Agency to safeguard public interest by enforcing sound standards of higher education and encouraging continuous improvement by reviewing and developing higher education benchmarks and quality criteria. Physical and Technological Infrastructure Development Strategies for increasing enrolment in higher education, improving research capacity, and enhancing the quality of education programs have been complemented by a host of physical and technological infrastructure programs to provide high quality education services. Through the University Computerization and Networking Program, all public sector universities have been provided high quality ICT infrastructure within their institution, including computer laboratories, and local and wide area networks. In addition, the revolutionary Pakistan Educational and Research Network (PERN) has extended its reach to all 60 public sector universities and provides internet connectivity of 155MB across the network. As a full voting member of the Asia Pacific Advance Network Consortium (APAN), PERN is also enhancing its functionality by providing connected universities with additional applications such as video conferencing and Voice Over IP services for communication between connected universities. Video conferencing will become operational this November and students in Pakistan will attend lectures interactively delivered by eminent experts in top universities in Western technologically advanced countries around the globe. Over 700 lectures by Nobel Laureates and top professors have already been lined up to be beamed into Pakistani lecture theatres. Institutions and campuses currently not connected to PERN, or located in remote areas beyond the current reach of the network, have been provided with a satellite based internet downlink providing high speed internet connectivity to support the ICT services. HEC’s Digital Library Program provides a globally unparalleled service with over 20,000 free online journals from the world’s leading publishing houses available to universities and R&D organizations across the country.  The facility also has 10,000 e-books available. Six engineering and three technological universities are being established and will soon become operational thanks to collaboration efforts with Germany, France, Sweden, South Korea, China and Austria.  Each university will be established at an estimated cost of approximately US$400 million. Over 4,500 scholars will be trained for the doctoral degrees and will return to Pakistan on completion of their training to form faculty of that university. The universities will have technology parks and technology incubators with enhanced links to the industry of the area. This will greatly help consolidate our technological base and make us more independent. I dream of seeing Pakistan at the forefront of frontier technologies. A World Bank report has recently termed the changes taking place in the higher education sector a ‘silent revolution’. Pakistan’s talented youth has the potential to use these opportunities so that Pakistan can transition from an agricultural economy to a knowledge economy. Professor Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman is Chairman of the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan. Linkages between Pakistani Institutions and Foreign Universities The Higher Education Commission’s umbrella project for the creation of academic linkages between Pakistani institutions of higher education and foreign universities in various fields has been launched at a capital cost of Rs. 308.772 million (US$5.07 million) for a period of three years. The aim of the project is to promote mutual awareness, understanding, and cooperation between universities in Pakistan and partner countries to improve quality of education and research in Pakistan. Examples of International Linkages: ·        COMSATS Institute of Information Technology, Islamabad has linked up with Texas A&M University for ‘Quantum Computing and Atomic Coherence Effects’. The collaboration is helping to create a critical mass of highly qualified scientific and technological manpower by initiating and carrying out world class research and specialized trainings.  ·        Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, University of Karachi (KIBGE) and Pasteur Institute, Paris, France are working to evaluate the role of genetic variation in a number of innate genes in susceptibility to tuberculosis in Pakistan. ·        NWFP University of Agriculture, Peshawar and University of Illinois Urbana Champaign (UIUC) and Southern ICU and University of California Davis aims to enhance professional skill through long term collaboration. Specifically, work is being done to catalogue brassica oilseed genetic resources. ·        Balochistan University of Information Technology and Management Sciences with University of Glasgow. Work is in progress to develop application of bioinformatics in elucidating biological mechanism through a model study in the health related biochemical and molecular profiles in various ethnic populations of Balochistan. The research will further facilitate research in agriculture, health, and environment and related industry. ·        The School of Biological Sciences, University of Punjab and National Health Research Complex and Pakistan Medical Research Council and St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, Queen Mary College, London promotes the institutional strengthening in applied immunology for the appropriate diagnosis and management of diabetes mellitus. The aim is the development of glycated haemoglobin test and assay kits, to benefit diabetes patients. The link will contribute key medical advances in the diabetes management research in Pakistan. ·        In collaboration the Department of Molecular Genetics, the University of Karachi and Department of Pathology and Neuroscience, Ninewells Medical School, University of Dundee are involved in Teaching Training and Research in DNA sequencing and Genetics.  The partnership will develop DNA sequencing capabilities of the Pakistani university and train its researchers in genetic engineering and biotechnology.