Pakistan to Cooperate with SAARC Universities on COVID ...

October-December 2020

HEC Forms Transition Body for PMC Act 2020

Hybrid Education Vital to Build Non-Elitist

Society: President Alvi

HEC Awards 10 Projects worth Rs. 150m for

Research on COVID-19

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SAARC VCs Meet Online

Pakistan to Cooperate with SAARC Universities on COVID Response


Graphic Designer Raja Ahmad Nadeem

Reporter Syed Muhammad Ittifaq

EditorAayesha Ikram

Higher Education Commission, Pakistan

News & Views is published after every

three months. No part of this publication

may be reproduced in any form without

prior written permission of the publisher.

The views expressed by authors in the

articles are their sole responsibility and

not of HEC. The Commission would like

to thank all the institutions and

individuals who contributed information

and photographs for this Magazine.

contentNews & Views (October-December 2020)


HEC Forms Transition Body for PMC Act 2020

Hybrid Education Vital to Build Non-Elitist Society: President Alvi

Dr. Shaista Sohail Joins HEC as Executive Director

HEC Offering Multiple Opportunities for Students of Balochistan

HEC Issues New Policy Guidance for Universities’ Online, Hybrid Operations

VCs Committed to Deterring Disruption in Education as COVID-19 Resurges

HEC Awards 10 Projects worth Rs. 150m for Research on COVID-19

91 Sri Lankan Students Win Scholarship to Study in Pakistan

HEC Formulates, Upgrades Policies on Basis of Evidence: Chairman

HEC Wins 15 Medals in Weightlifting Championship

NAHE holds Capacity Building Trainings for HEC Employees

HEC, Oxfam Join Hands for Implementation of Policy on Sexual Harassment

NTC Committed to Improving Quality of Technology Education

President Alvi for Joint Efforts to Curb Drug Use, Facilitate Differently-abled Students

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Chairman Higher Education

Commission (HEC) Tariq Banuri

has said that all the SAARC

Member States have similar

experiences in terms of the use

of different applications and

software for online education,

governance of e-learning

system, capacity building of

faculty, poor internet

connectivity, and power

breakdowns and need for

technological infrastructure.

“All of the SAARC Member

States have addressed different

issues with different degrees of

success and all of them will

benefit from sharing of

information, pooling of

resources and collaboration in

capacity building as well as

research. Pakistan is fully

committed to regional

cooperation and would be

happy to arrange capacity

building programmes for

regional partners and support

collaborative research and

exchange.”

He said this while chairing a

meeting of the Vice

Chancellors and

representatives of HEC,

University Grants Commissions

(UGCs) or equivalent entities of

the SAARC Member States.

HEC Pakistan hosted the two-

day online meeting. It

discussed in detail the issues

and challenges pertaining to

the online mode of learning

amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.

During the meeting, delegates

from all the SAARC States,

including Afghanistan,

Bangladesh, Bhutan, India,

Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and

Sri Lanka shared how the

universities and other higher

education institutions in their

respective countries are

functioning in the current

situation, and what solutions

are being adopted to cope

with the multifaceted

challenges posed by the

COVID-19 pandemic.

The sessions of the meeting

covered topics such as the

technological infrastructure for

online learning, effective

teaching through online mode,

quality assurance for online


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SAARC VCs Meet Online

education, and evaluation

and assessment for online

education. The delegates

presented their respective

national statements on all

the topics.

The participants noted that

online education is

altogether different from

conventional teaching.

There was a consensus

that sharing of

experience of the shift to

online education will be

highly beneficial for all

the Member States.

The Vice Chancellors also

discussed various

approaches being

adopted to make sure

that the quality of education

is not compromised, besides

ways and methods for

proper monitoring of online

examination and evaluation.

During the meeting,

Director Education, Security

and Culture, SAARC

Secretariat, Ms. Varuni

Muthukumarana said that

education has always been one

of the core areas of

cooperation among SAARC

member countries. She

stressed the need for

harnessing the efforts to

ensure the quality of online

learning.

Mr. Banuri appreciated all the

participants for their

commitment to enhancing

cooperation among higher

education institutions of

SAARC countries, especially

with regard to Covid-19

situation. He thanked the

SAARC Secretariat and other

participants for their valuable

insight and recommendations

for overcoming different

challenges of online education.

“I would like to reflect the

collective feeling of participants

that there is a need for

immediate cooperation in all

the areas discussed. Though all

the countries are making

a varying level of

progress in different

categories, we will all

benefit from the sharing

of spheres, including

technology usage,

bringing efficiency in

blended teaching and

learning, online

assessment and

evaluation of students,

and quality assurance

mechanisms.”

He further added that the

‘content of new pedagogical

enterprise’ needs to be pooled,

while curating the courses,

giving the students an easy

access to education, lowering

the cost of online e-learning,

and developing content and

making it easily available to

students.

The ‘content of new pedagogical enterprise’ needs to be pooled, while curating

the courses, giving the students an easy access to education, lowering the cost of online e-

learning, and developing content and making it easily

available to students.

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Pursuant to the promulgation

of PMC Act 2020, the uniform

minimum standards of basic

and higher medical education,

training and recognition of

qualifications in medicine and

dentistry will be formulated

and implemented.

PMC and the HEC will work

together and closely

HEC Forms Transition Body for PMC Act 2020coordinate to define the

regulatory scope. The

Transition Committee has

been constituted to ensure

that there will be gradual

transition in terms of setting

standards, devising

mechanisms/policies

regarding curriculum, faculty

and inspection of medical and

dental colleges.

The Higher Education

Commission (HEC), Pakistan

has constituted a Transition

Committee with

representation of relevant

stakeholders for a smooth

transition to the regulatory

framework governing medical

and dental education under

the Pakistan Medical

Commission (PMC) Act 2020.

(HEC) and the British Council.

Minister for Federal Education

and Professional Training Mr.

Shafqat Mahmood and

Chairman HEC Tariq Banuri

also attended the session.

The three days of conference

brought together scholars and

higher education experts from

the UK and Pakistan to share

how universities in both the

countries have responded to

COVID scenario, and discussed

further strengthening of

strategic transnational

education partnership

between the two countries.

Various sessions of the

conference focused on

building a sustainable future

for international higher

education, role of higher

education leadership during

COVID, international

collaborations and

internationalisation

of higher education,

future of distance

learning, and

mobility

programmes.

The President

appreciated the

HEC-BC

partnerships, which

have led to

development of

Pakistan’s first

Open and Distance Learning

Policy. He emphasised that

COVID, besides its

catastrophic impacts on all the

spheres of life, will leave

strong imprints on the

education system, and that the

situation has created

President of Pakistan Dr. Arif

Alvi has said that Pakistan is

moving towards developing a

non-elitist society and in this

pursuit the hybrid mode of

learning can play a vital role.

He said that Pakistan is quickly

transitioning into an era,

wherein hybrid

education is

changing the whole

spectrum of society

by opening new

possibilities and

opportunities. It has

made knowledge

dynamic and non-

static.

He made these

remarks while

addressing the

closing session of the 3-day

Pak-UK Education Gateway

virtual conference entitled

“Rethinking and Reshaping a

Resilient Higher Education

System.” The conference was

jointly organised by the

Higher Education Commission

Hybrid Education Vital to Build Non-Elitist Society: President Alvi

Pak-UK Education Gateway Virtual Conference

Various sessions of the conference focused on building a sustainable

future for international higher education, role of higher education

leadership during COVID, international collaborations and

internationalisation of higher education, future of distance

learning, and mobility programmes.

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opportunities by making

institutions adopt new

highways towards progress.

Dr. Alvi asserted that the

hybrid learning has made it

easier for women to get

educated and empowered,

adding that it is one of the

Government’s priorities to

make education less expensive

and less-elitist.

He said that the Pakistani

universities are providing

virtual and open learning

much cheaper, compared to

the rest of the world, and

stressed the need for teachers

to adapt themselves to the

new teaching requirements.

“The faster we move, the

sooner we will make it easier

for people to acquire

education in the prevailing

situation.”

He also highlighted the need

for development of a

certification system to

examine and assess students.

He also underlined the

significance of the Pakistani

diaspora in the UK and across

the world, especially

professionals, in terms of their

role in the uplift of systems in

the country.

Minister Shafqat Mahmood

said that 1.5 million Pakistani

youth are critical asset of the

country, and the Government

is committed to investing in

youth development to

position them in the global

market.

Acknowledging the

paramount importance of UK’s

education system, he said that

Pakistan is also putting

strenuous efforts to make its

higher education system

compatible with the best

higher education sectors of

the world. “In this pursuit, the

contribution of partners like

Pak-UK Education Gateway was launched in 2018, with an aim to

further enhance partnership between the higher education

sectors of Pakistan and the UK under a structured programme

jointly sponsored by the Government of Pakistan and the British

Council Pakistan.

Under the programme, the key areas of collaboration include:

innovative and collaborative research, higher education

leadership, quality assurance and standard setting, distance

learning, international mobility, community engagement and

transnational education.

During the first year of execution, 21 travel and exploratory

grants have enabled 50 plus faculty to meet relevant partners,

seven large scale projects between UK and Pakistan have been

shortlisted to embark upon crucial research ventures, strategic

relationships have been developed between National Academy

of Higher Education (NAHE) and Advance Higher Education UK

to help enhance the governance systems and Quality Assurance

Agency of the UK is closely working with HEC to help establish

quality mechanisms for the higher education sector of Pakistan.

Pakistan-UK Education Gateway

the UK Government and the

British Council, who are

consistently lending their hand

to us, are highly valuable.”

The Minister said that Pakistan

appreciated the openness of

the British people towards the

Pakistani diaspora. He said the

programmes like Pak-UK

Education Gateway can prove

to be very helpful in rethinking

anniversary of Pakistan-UK

Education Gateway. He

emphasised that it is high time

to strengthen international

collaboration to share not only

the best practices but also the

challenges the entire world is

facing in the wake of COVID-

19 outbreak. “We have to learn

from each other and advance

our educational agenda

forward.” He said that as the

and reshaping a resilient

higher education sector. He

admired the role of this

programme in developing the

Pakistan’s Open and Distance

Learning Policy.


congratulated the conference

participants on the second

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COVID has changed the world,

including the higher education

sector, the HEC adopted an

eight-component approach to

mitigate the disruption. He

also dilated on the measures

taken for technology

preparedness, teacher

preparedness, student

preparedness, course

development, laboratories and

libraries readiness,

examination and evaluation

mechanism, and student

access to higher education.

In his remarks, Minister for

South Asia, Foreign,

Commonwealth and

Development Office, Tariq

Mehmood Ahmed said the

HEC-BC partnership has

ushered a new era of bilateral

engagement and productive

outcomes. He said that the UK

Government attaches high

importance to supporting

education in Pakistan. He

informed the participants that

35000 Pakistani students have

completed their degrees in the

past few years in the UK

universities, while 60,000

students are currently pursuing

their degrees. “These numbers

will continue to grow, as we

building on the success of the

bilateral partnership.”

During the sessions, Dr. Fateh

Marri, Member Operations &

Planning, HEC, briefed the

panelists about the HEC’s

efforts to mitigate the

disruption caused by COVID-

19. He said that HEC

established three different

committees to deal with

medical, technological and

infrastructural, and content

related issues in order to

mitigate the disruption in the

education process. He also

apprised the conference

participants of challenges and

outcomes of the Learning

Management System adopted

by higher education

institutions in Pakistan. He also

shed light on the HEC

guidelines with regard to the

efforts to continue with the

educational process.

Mr. Alison Johns, CEO Advance

HE, UK dilated on the

challenges faced by the UK

higher education sector and

the response of the leadership

during the COVID-19

pandemic.

Vivienne Sterm, Member of the

steering committee on

Pakistan-UK Education

Gateway, shared the

experience and responses from

the UK higher education sector

to the COVID-19 crisis,

highlighting a number of good

practices adopted in the said

time.

Ms. Shahnaz Wazir Ali,

President, SZABIST, stressed

the need for universities to be

responsive to the rapidly

changing environment of the

day, not just locally but also

globally.

Tahir Abbas Zaidi, Director

Attestation & Accreditation

HEC Pakistan shares his

thoughts on Transnational

Education, and how

international collaborations

are beneficial for providing

access to quality education to

students.

Dr. Mike Winter, Director

Global Engagement, University

of London International said,

“I'm inspired by the herculean

efforts of all stakeholders to

offer some continuity to the

delivery of the curriculum in

the face of this pandemic."

Mr. Matthew Foster, Director

International Development

Office, Open University UK

shared the idea behind the

establishment of the Open

University which was to

provide access and

opportunity to anyone seeking

to pursue higher education.

Dr. Zia-ul-Qayyum VC, Allama

Iqbal Open University spoke

about the various model of

distance learning in Pakistan.

And emphasised the

importance of creating

bespoke online learning

systems for students, shaped

to meet their unique needs.

On the occasion, Deputy High

Commissioner, British High

Commission, Mike

Nithavrianakis said that the

higher education sector is of

enormous importance for the

two countries, and the two

countries can make

remarkable achievements by

continuing and further

promoting the partnership.

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The Higher Education Commission (HEC), Pakistan

requests all the provinces to earmark special

allocations for students from Balochistan. In a

statement, Chairman HEC Tariq Banuri said the

special allocations by provinces will build upon

the HEC’s dedicated programme of support for

Baloch students as well as students from remote

and less developed regions of the country.

In addition to the quota allocated for the students

from Balochistan in HEC’s all general scholarship

schemes, special progammes have also been

initiated. These initiatives have resulted in award

of 4523 need-based scholarships, 3000 Ehsaas

scholarships, 227 overseas scholarships, 332

indigenous scholarships and placement of 300

students in medical colleges every year.

In May 2020, a special package of Rs. 285 million

was separately allocated for universities of

Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan, over and above

their normal allocation for the upcoming financial

year 2020-21. The special programmes also

include Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan Package

for Master’s Leading to PhD Scholarship

Programme (Indigenous and Overseas). Since its

launch in 2012, 143 students have received

overseas scholarships, 159 students have availed

indigenous scholarships.

Similarly, 1000 undergraduate and 294

postgraduate scholarships were awarded under

the “Provision of Higher Education Opportunities

for Students of Balochistan & FATA (Phase-II)”

project, and 44 students under the “Law Graduates

Scholarship Programme for Balochistan for Study

Abroad” project. Students from Gwadar are also

being supported under a CPEC project. Since 2017,

50 students have completed their Chinese

language course in China, 19 BS (four-year)

students are studying in various institutions, and

cases of 31 students are under process.

Furthermore, a total of 30941 students from

Balochistan have benefitted from the Prime

Minister’s Fee Reimbursement Scheme for Less-

Developed Areas since 2012-13. HEC will continue

to undertake its mission of equipping the students

from Balochistan with international level of

education.

HEC Offering Multiple Opportunities for Students of Balochistan

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Dr. Shaista Sohail, a BPS-22 officer of

Pakistan Administrative Service has

joined the Higher Education

Commission (HEC), Pakistan as its

Executive Director.

With a doctorate in International

Relations from Geneva School of

Diplomacy, Switzerland and Masters

in Economics from University of the Punjab, Dr.

Shaista Sohail brings with her a diverse

experience of serving at national and

international levels.

She started her career as a Lecturer of Economics

at Government College for Women Okara. She

joined the Civil Service of Pakistan in 1985 with

her first assignment as Assistant Commissioner,

Karachi South. Her key postings

include Joint Secretary, Policy and

Planning, Ministry of Industries;

Member Estate CDA; Joint Secretary,

Debt Management/ Japan EAD;

Additional Secretary to the President

of Pakistan; Special Secretary Cabinet;

Secretary Statistics; Secretary Poverty

Alleviation and Social Safety Division,

Deputy Secretary Commerce WTO, Economic

Counsellor to WTO, Geneva.

In WTO Geneva, her abilities were recognised

internationally when she was made the

consensus Chairperson of the Working Party on

GATS Rules from amongst 150 countries. She

also won the “Best Contributor” Award from ITC

Geneva in 2007 Chamonix France.

Dr. Shaista Sohail Joins HEC as Executive Director

of students should not exceed 30 per cent of

the design capacity of the hotels (or a small

number if so dictated by health considerations).

“All SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) shall

be implemented strictly and diligently. The

universities will put in place appropriate

measures including isolating hostel residents

(i.e., treating the hostel as a safe bubble) to

protect them from external infection. Besides,

the universities shall draw up rules regarding

the presence of faculty members or staff on

campus,” it further said.

“All the VCs and heads of institutions shall

ensure that the flexibility granted by the

government is exercised in a judicious manner,

authorised at the highest level, and monitored

and managed effectively and efficiently,” read

the new Policy Guidance. HEC has also released

Rs. 10 million each to all public sector

HEC Issues New Policy Guidance for Universities’ Online, Hybrid Operations

Second Wave of COVID-19

examinations, such as MDCAT, other entrance

exams, recruitment exams, or prescheduled

small examinations (e.g., less than 30 students).

These could be conducted, if absolutely

necessary, with strict observance of all health

and safety protocols.

As for hostels, the new Policy Guidance said

that the VCs have the authority to allow limited

occupancy of hostels, subject to the instructed

restrictions. Only the students in the “essential”

categories would be allowed. The total number

All the VCs and heads of institutions shall ensure that the exibility granted by the government is exercised in a judicious manner, authorised at the highest level, and monitored and managed

effectively and efciently,

may be allowed on campus. These categories

may comprise low income students who may

have connectivity problems at home because of

lack of access to the Internet or the availability

of proper devices, foreign students, those PhD

or MPhil students (or final year students) who

need to use the laboratories to complete their

thesis work, or third year or higher medical

students who need to obtain clinical training.”

Universities were told that the total number of

the students permitted to come to campus

should not exceed 30 per cent of the total

enrollment, or a lower number if dictated by the

campus conditions.

Similarly, as the VCs might require the faculty

members to come to campus for delivering or

preparing their online lectures. All the large

examinations planned for December 2020 were

postponed, with exception of assessment

The Higher Education Commission (HEC),

Pakistan has announced a new Policy Guidance

for the Higher Education Institutions (HEIs),

following the Government’s decision regarding ndcontinuation of education during the 2 wave of

COVID-19.

In the light of the Government directions, the

VCs were authorised to allow small groups of

“essential” individuals on campus, subject to

implementation of scrutiny mechanisms or

safeguards. “Only certain categories of students

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universities to help them establish any

supportive arrangements needed to improve

the quality of the online education process.

Besides, the universities may recruit senior,

tech-savvy students to assist faculty members

in technology related problems involved in

online education.

Furthermore, HEC has constituted a COVID

Response Oversight Committee to collaborate

with the Vice Chancellors in their respective

regions, clarify questions or concerns, share

best practices, and oversee implementation.

The Committee is headed by Dr. Niaz Akhtar,

The Vice Chancellors (VCs) of all universities

across the country have reiterated their

commitment to ensure adherence to the SOPs

and government guidelines in view of the

situation evolving out of the COVID-19 thresurgence in the country. The 34 VCs

Committee meeting held online was attended

by a large number of Vice Chancellors and

Rectors.

The university heads reviewed the situation on

campuses with regard to the COVID-19,

especially in the perspective of the second wave

of the pandemic. They said that the universities

have taken a number of steps to cope with the

situation, including strict enforcement of SOPs

on campuses, reducing the numbers of students

in classrooms and hostels, and shift to hybrid

modes of instruction.

“In fact, while the adherence to SOPs has

dropped significantly in most other public

places, universities have tried hard to maintain

their level of vigilance and provide good

examples for others,” said the Vice Chancellors.

They expressed their total commitment to

adhering to the guidelines issued by the NCOC

Vice Chancellor Punjab University, and

comprises Dr. Tabassum Afzal (for ICT), Vice

Chancellor COMSATS University Islamabad, Dr.

Aslam Uqaili, Vice Chancellor Mehran University

of Engineering and Technology (for Sindh), Dr.

Abid Ali, Vice Chancellor Peshawar University

(for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Engr. Farooq Bazai,

Vice Chancallor BUITEMS (for Balochistan), Dr.

Kaleem Abbasi, Vice Chancellor AJK University

(for AJK), and Dr. Naeem Khan, Vice Chancellor

Baltistan University (for Gilgit-Baltistan).

The Committee will also interact with the

respective provincial governments to ensure

synchronised and cooperative action.

VCs Committed to Deterring Disruption in Education as COVID-19 Resurges

(National Command and Operation Centre) and

the health authorities. Majority of the VCs said

that they can switch to online or hybrid

instruction mode, and limiting those who are

allowed to enter the campus, in case the re-

emergence of the virus requires curtailment of

public interaction.

The meeting also discussed other options for

action, including enhancing counselling services

for students as well as the general public,

sharing of information and technical resources,

and mutual learning from best practices. They

also demanded that PTA (Pakistan

Telecommunication Authority) arrange better

data packages for students and faculty members

in order to facilitate online interaction and

instruction.

During the meeting, Chairman HEC Tariq Banuri

apprised the university heads of the decisions

made in the last NCOC meeting. He emphasized,

“We need to do the best we can to deter any

disruption in the education system being caused

by the situation evolving due to the COVID-19

recurrence.” He stressed that the universities

need to prepare and look ahead as to how they

can deal better any evolving situation.

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Pakistan has finalised 10 project proposals for

funding under the Rapid Research Grant (RRG)

launched in response to COVID-19 crisis. The

grant is aimed to encourage academic research

to strengthen clinical management or public

health response against this virus.

The HEC launched the focused RRG in April 2020

to engage academia in research around the

clinical management of this epidemic. Under the

specialised research initiative, potential project

proposals were invited to contribute to the

much-needed understanding of coronaviruses --

the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome

Coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and COVID-19.

Considering the time-crunch, a specialised panel

was constituted and tasked to complete the

shortlisting in 3-4 weeks. More than 300

applications were received for this grant. After

independent reviews, 58 proposals were

shortlisted based on already announced

eligibility criteria and other necessary

requirements. Later, these proposals were jointly

reviewed by experts of Medical and Biological

Sciences, Engineering and Technology and finally

10 quality projects made it to the last stage after

rigorous scrutiny.

The budget for each of RRG award is up to a

maximum of Rs. 15 million (USD 100,000) with a

maximum project duration of 12 months. These

research projects offer a variety of pragmatic

solution-oriented research, ranging from early

detection diagnostic kits to immune response

and understanding the virus behaviour.

University of the Punjab has won two grants --

one for an indigenous, low-cost production of

ultra-pure Taq Polymerase and PCR mix for

COVID-19 clinical diagnostic kits, and the other

for development of a reliable, economical and

high throughput serodiagnosis method for early

detection of COVID-19.

COMSATS University Islamabad has won the

grant for development of RT-LAMP Assay for

early detection of COVID-19, while National

Textile University, Faisalabad research will focus

on development of bioactive hospital textiles

and protective suits against viruses and bacteria

by immobilisation of nanomaterials. The

University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences,

Lahore has won the research grant for

epidemiological disease modelling and

molecular surveillance of SARS-CoV-2, while

DOW University of Health Sciences, Karachi will

be working on IVIG production from

convalescent plasma of COVID-19 survivors, a

low risk, high efficiency passive immunisation

strategy against SARS-CoV-2. Interestingly, the

test results of DOW university research are

already very promising.

Other project winners include the University of

Health Sciences, Lahore (Immunological Virology

and Genetic Basis of COVID-19 Patients), Lahore

University of Management Sciences (Mapping

Immune Response to SARS-COv2 using a

multidisciplinary approach), Aga Khan University,

Karachi (Phylo- and immuno- dynamics of SARS-

CoV-2 infection in Pakistan: relating COVID 19

disease severity in with viral diversity) and Health

Services Academy (HSA), Islamabad

(Computational Modelling for COVID-19

Epidemic in Pakistan: Predictive Modelling of

Disease Morbidity, Mortality and Assessment of

Demands on the Intensive Care Units).

With provision of RRGs, HEC hopes that

academic researchers will come forward to

contribute to better health systems coping with

the real-life challenges.



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Pakistan High Commission

(PHC) Colombo and

University Grants Commission

(UGC), Sri Lanka.

A total of 172 applicants were

shortlisted for interview, out

of which 91 students have

been finally selected.

Spread over five years,

Allama Iqbal Scholarship

provide an excellent

opportunity for 1000 Sri

Lankan students to visit

Pakistan and pursue

undergraduate,

postgraduate, and doctoral

degree programmes in

Engineering Sciences, Basic

and Natural Sciences, and

Social Sciences.

The scholarship aims to

promote an effective

exchange of knowledge and

better understanding of

cultures and tradition

between Sri Lankan and

Pakistani students. Allama

91 Sri Lankan Students Win Scholarship to Study in Pakistan

Iqbal Scholarships are part of

HEC's internationalization

initiative to encourage

international students to study

in Pakistan.

The Sri Lankan students will

study in their respective

programmes in COMSATS

University, Islamabad; Fatima

Jinnah Women University,

Rawalpindi; Government

College University, Lahore;

Hazara University, Mansehra;

Islamic International

University, Islamabad; Institute

of Management Sciences,

Peshawar; Mehran University

of Engineering and

Technology, Jamshoro; NED

University of Engineering and

Technology, Karachi; National

University of Sciences and

Technology, Islamabad; Quaid-

i-Azam University, Islamabad;

Sukkur IBA University, Sukkur;

University of Engineering and

Technology, Taxila; and

University of the Punjab (UoP),

Lahore.


Commission (HEC), Pakistan

has awarded Allama Iqbal

Scholarship to 91 Sri Lankan

students for Fall-2020/Spring-

2021 sessions to pursue

higher education in Pakistani

universities, under Pak-Sri

Lanka Higher Education

Cooperation Programme.

The selected students have

started arriving in Pakistan

and so far 27 students have

reached Islamabad, Lahore,

Karachi and Sukkur to join

their respective universities.

As many as 525 Sri Lankan

students had applied for

Medical, Engineering, BS, MS,

and PhD programmes in

response to HEC

announcement for Fall

2020/Spring 2021 admissions.

A selection board was

constituted for online

interviews, which comprised

officials from HEC Pakistan,

11

Chairman Higher Education

Commission (HEC) Tariq Banuri

has said that HEC always

protects the rights of teachers

and students with the goal of

continuous enhancement in

the quality of education.

“We are reviewing all the past

policies for flaws or

redundancies in order to

improve, modify, amend, or

revoke, as needed, but all this

has to be based on evidence,

analysis, and a proper

rationale, not random

observation. That is the

approach we have established

at HEC.”

These remarks were made after

the Chairman met with a few

representatives of a university

teachers’ association. He said

that HEC has been

continuously devising and

developing policies for all the

stakeholders, after due

consultation with experts from

all across Pakistan and nothing

is prepared or finalised in

haste.

“Every policy has gone through

a number of phases, namely

identification of a problem

(often by aggrieved persons),

collection of evidence, in-

house analysis, review by

external experts, and thorough

consultation with faculty

members, university leaders,

and other professionals from

all across Pakistan. This leads

to drafting of detailed

proposals, with proper

justifications, for the

consideration of HEC’s

governing body. The

Commission then takes

appropriate decisions after

considering all aspects of the

issues, and on the basis of the

best interest of students,

teachers, and the society in

general,” the Chairman said.

The main concerns raised by

the delegation pertained to

the service conditions and

benefits of university teachers.

It was also emphasised that

these matters had long-term

implications, and policies and

structures could be modified

only after due deliberation,

and never in haste. The

university teachers were urged

to make constant

improvement in teaching and

research their foremost cause.

The faculty members were

informed that one of the

fundamental principles of

HEC's policy reform was that

no change would be applied

retroactively, and that all

benefits achieved by anyone

on the basis of an old policy

would be respected under the

new policy. Only their future

actions will need to conform to

the new policy. This principle

was introduced to protect the

interests of the faculty.

It was explained that the policy

could be reviewed only on the

basis of proper evidence, and a

justifiable rationale that

relaxation of the policy would

not affect the quality of

education. In May 2020, HEC

had requested FAPUASA to

provide such evidence.

The faculty representatives

offered to collect the statistical

data and evidence and submit

a written rationale.

A deadline of March 31, 2021

was agreed for the policy

review on the basis of evidence

and rationale.

The Chairman HEC said that

HEC, as a regulatory authority,

was equally mindful of the

concerns of BPS as well as TTS

faculty. To resolve the issue of

time scale promotion, it is

necessary to prepare

comprehensive service statutes

for BPS faculty members, after

weighing their full implications.

The TTS faculty members have

been asked to propose their

concrete recommendations

regarding these statutes.

These recommendations will

be reviewed and analysed as

per HEC's procedures and

submitted to the Commission thfor consideration at its 39

meeting scheduled in March

2021.

HEC Formulates, Upgrades Policies on Basis of Evidence: Chairman

12


Commission (HEC) has secured nd2 position in the Inter-

Departmental Weightlifting

Championship (Junior

Category) in addition to

grabbing 15 medals, including

four gold, six silver, and five

bronze medals. The national

senior and junior Inter-

HEC Wins 15 Medals in Weightlifting Championship

Departmental Weightlifting

Championship was held at

Railway Stadium, Garhi Shahu,

Lahore under the auspices of

Pakistan Weightlifting

Federation.

The Championship was held

under different senior and

junior categories, 55-kg, 61-kg,

67-kg, 73-kg, 81-kg, 89-kg, 96-

kg, 102-kg, 109-kg and over

109-kg. HEC team won six

medals in senior category

while nine medals in junior

category. For this national

competition, HEC had

conducted open selection trials

for all the Pakistani higher

education institutions at

University of Veterinary and

Animal Sciences, Lahore.

Among other national

institutions, teams of Pakistan

Army, Pakistan Railways, Water

and Power Development

Authority, and police also took

part in the Championship.

It is pertinent to mention here

that HEC will also award prize

money and one year

scholarship to all of its

medalist players.

The National Academy of Higher Education

(NAHE) organised a series of trainings under its

capacity building programme. The trainings for

HEC staff was organised in collaboration with the

National Information Technology Board (NITB).

The trainings covered comprehensive sessions

on E-office procedure. E-office is an electronic

system of office and operational management

which will help make functions more efficient

and improve accountability at HEC.

The programme is being implemented across

various ministries in the government, and has

been approved by the Federal Cabinet and the

National e-Government Council. The capacity

building programme contained weekly

workshops for HEC employees, training more

than 600 individuals.

NAHE is established as a stand-alone,

autonomous institution operating under the

auspices of HEC to improve the quality of

teaching, research and governance in higher

education institutions across Pakistan. It is

envisioned as the premier institution for quality

research and teaching related to all aspects of

higher education in Pakistan. This series of

trainings is one of multiple ongoing NAHE

endeavours at HEC'.

NAHE holds Capacity Building Trainings for HEC Employees

13

The Higher Education Commission (HEC)

Pakistan and Oxfam in Pakistan have agreed to

collaborate for successful implementation of

HEC’s Policy on ‘Protection against Sexual

Harassment in Higher Education Institutions

(HEIs)’ and address the incidents of sexual

harassment in the Pakistani universities.

In this connection, a Letter of Intent (LoI) was

signed by Adviser (Administration and

Coordination) HEC, Mr. Awais Ahmed and

Country Director Oxfam, Syed Shahnawaz Ali

during a ceremony.

The LoI signing ceremony was also attended by

Director General (HRD) HEC Ms. Aayesha Ikram,

Consultant Policy and Legal Affairs HEC Dr. Daud

Munir, Director University Advancement HEC Ms.

Dur-e-Shahwar, Programme Manager (Gender

Justice) Oxfam, Ms. Seher Afsheen and Gender

Specialist Oxfam, Mr. Sartaj Abbasi.

The purpose of this collaboration is to work

jointly and provide technical support to

universities for establishment of an effective

Complaint Response Mechanism to address

incidents of sexual harassment and abuse. The

two sides will oversee the initiatives and capacity

building of the staff of Inquiry Committees

involved in handling complaints of sexual

harassment.

In his remarks, Mr. Awais Ahmed shed light on

the importance of HEC’s Policy on Protection

against Sexual Harassment and stressed that

HEC is committed to ensuring that the university

environment is equally conducive for men and

women. He hoped that HEC-Oxfam collaboration

will prove helpful for HEIs to effectively execute

this policy.

Mr. Shahnawaz Ali appreciated HEC’s efforts to

address abuse and harassment at the academic

institutions. He asserted that it is responsibility

of the State to ensure quality and safe education

for vulnerable segment of the society. “Access to

education equals access to professional settings

and financial independence, which will ensure

greater female participation in all segments of

life,” he observed.

14

HEC, Oxfam Join Hands for Implementation of Policy on Sexual Harassment

As per the LoI, HEC will provide technical

guidance and input to Oxfam in development of

the Complaint Response Mechanism framework

and the training and communication materials. It

will advise universities to extend necessary

cooperation to Oxfam teams for establishment

and strengthening of Inquiry Committees and

capacity building of the relevant staff.

Oxfam will support selected universities for

establishment of Complaint Response

Mechanisms and strengthening of existing

complaint mechanisms to address incidents of

sexual harassment. It will conduct capacity

building training of Inquiry Committee Members

and Focal Persons for effective handling of the

complaints. It will also develop relevant material

for raising awareness as well as capacity building.

Student & Parent

ALERT!Please do not take admission in unauthorised 2-Year BA/BSc or MA/MSc Programmes

However, because of the disruption caused by the

coronavirus, the following flexibility has been

allowed:

• Universities have been given a grace period of

three months to conclude the final BA/BSc exams.

Any exams concluded before March 31, 2021 shall

be considered to be 2020 exams.

• Similarly, the deadline for admission to the final

cohort of the MA/MSc programmes is also

extended to March 31, 2021 so that the final

cohort of BA/BSc students can apply for admission.

• In addition, holders of BA/BSc degrees are allowed

to apply for admission in the third year or 5th

semester of the BS programme, subject to the

completion of a bridging semester or any

additional course requirements that the university

may impose.

• Any student who misses the deadline to get

admission to the MA/MSc programmes can apply thinstead for admission to the third year (i.e., 5

semester) of the BS programme, which is a far

superior option.

• Fresh students can be admitted either directly into

the 4-year BS programme, or in the 2-year

Associate Degree Programmes, offered through

recognized campuses, constituent and affiliated

colleges in place of the old BA/BSc programmes.

In case of admission in illegal and phased-out

programmes, the students will end up bearing all

risks and costs or any associated loss incurred. HEC

cannot recognize degrees of students who enrolled in

conventional BA/BSc programmes after December 31,

2018. Likewise, the last date for admission in

conventional MA/MSc programmes is March 31,

2021.

Students are advised not to waste their time and

money by enrolling in unauthorised degree

programmes, such as 2-year BA/BSc or MA/MSc

programmes. These programmes have been

phased out because of quality concerns.

One or two universities have announced

admission to unauthorised BA/BSc and MA/MSc

programmes. While this will earn money for the

university, it will not be in the interest of the

students. These discarded degrees will not enable

students to apply for jobs or further education.

The decision to phase out the BA/BSc and

MA/MSc programmes, and replace them with a

single, composite, 4-year BS degree was taken in

2004. However, universities were allowed to

continue both systems in a transition period.

In 2011, the Associate Degree (AD) was

announced as an alternative to the BA/BSc

degree. AD is equivalent to 14 years schooling, thand entitles graduates to get admission in the 5

semester of respective BS programmes after

fulfilling the admitting university’s requirements.

In 2016, the transition period was concluded, and

a final decision made to stop admissions in

BA/BSc programmes on December 31, 2018, and

in MA/MSc programmes on December 31, 2020.

It was also decided that the last BA/BSc exam

would be held in 2020, and that the admission to

the last batch of MA/MSc students would take

place before December 31, 2020. These decisions

were confirmed in 2017, and again in 2018, 2019,

and 2020.

15

The National Technology Council (NTC) is

committed to working for the betterment of

engineering technologists and improving the

overall standards of technology education and

curriculum in the light of contemporary

challenges.

This was stated by Chairman NTC Imtiaz Gilani thwhile chairing the 6 NTC meeting held at the

Higher Education Commission (HEC). Chairman

HEC Tariq Banuri also attended the meeting

through a video link. The meeting was attended

by newly appointed members, including Vice

Chairman Dr. Muhammad Mukhtar and other ex-

officio members.

The Chairman NTC said that the significant issues

of engineering technologists needing immediate

attention include approval of their service

structure. “The service structure needs to be

based on a vertical growth, opportunities to

compete for research, and technologically

oriented positions in the country, including

NTC Committed to Improving Quality of Technology Education

entrepreneurship in technologies relevant

domains.”

The NTC meeting participants appreciated the

HEC’s initiative for announcement of 200

scholarships for technologists.

Important decisions were made with regard to

streamlining academic and governance activities

at NTC. A committee was constituted to make

the technology education in line with the HEC’s

Undergraduate Education Policy 2020. It was also

decided to recommend the inclusion of one

representative of technologist associations as

the Council Member.

The NTC Chairman and members expressed a

resolve to take tangible measures for betterment

of engineering technologists in the country. The

meeting concluded with a resolve that NTC must

go with its broader dimensions in emerging

technologies benefitting humanity and boosting

the national economy.

16

President of Pakistan Dr. Arif

Alvi has stressed the need for

collective efforts to root out

the growing menace of drug

addiction on university

campuses, and to extend all-

out facilitation to differently-

abled students.

He was addressing an online

meeting with the Vice

Chancellors (VCs) of all public

and private sector

universities on the

issues regarding

differently-abled

students as well as

drug addiction.

The meeting was

also attended by

Federal Minister for

Education Shafqat

Mahmood, Federal

Minister for

Narcotics Control

Mr. Muhammad

Azam Khan Swati,

Federal Minister for Human

Rights Dr. Shireen M. Mazari,

Chairman HEC Tariq Banuri,

and Director General Anti-

Narcotics Force Major General

Muhammad Arif Malik.

During the first session on

proliferation of drug use on

campuses, the meeting

deliberated on measures to

curtail drug use through

student counselling services,

creation of a hotline, formation

of a whistler-blower

mechanism, penalisation of

President Alvi for Joint Efforts to Curb Drug Use, Facilitate Differently-abled Students

elements involved in use and

supply of drugs, constitution of

parent-teacher coordination

bodies, student counselling,

creation of a hotline, and

coordination with

rehabilitation facilities. Steps

necessary for supply reduction,

demand reduction, progress

review, and de-stigmitisation

of institutions were also

brought under consideration.

Mr. Azam Swati briefed the

meeting about various

initiatives for drug control

taken by his Ministry, and the

Ministry’s desire to work in

close coordination with the

universities to curb this

increasing menace. He

suggested a number of steps

to be taken and implemented

by the universities.

It was decided that all the

relevant stakeholders will

coordinate and come up with a

concrete policy on curtailing

use of drugs on campuses,

latest by March. The President

directed HEC to develop

appropriate policy guidelines,

in consultation with all the

stakeholders, to support

universities address this issue

in an effective manner.

Dr. Alvi stressed that

universities must take every

step necessary to make their

campuses safe from

drugs. “This is not

only a moral

imperative.

Universities have a

legal responsibility

too to implement all

the relevant

national laws.”He

said that the

academia must

utilise the services

of psychologists

and psychiatrists,

social workers, and

non-government

organisations in issues

pertaining to drug usage.

The VCs of the Punjab

University, Peshawar University,

Haripur University, BUITEMS

Quetta and SZABIST Karachi

along with others shared how

they are dealing with this

challenge at present, and gave

suggestions to strengthen

these efforts with coordination

of all the stakeholders.

During the second session on

differently abled students, the

The meeting deliberated on measures to curtail drug use

through student counselling services, creation of a hotline, formation of a

whistler-blower mechanism, penalisation of elements involved in use and supply of drugs, constitution

of parent-teacher coordination bodies, student counselling, creation of a hotline, and coordination with

rehabilitation facilities.

17

participants pondered upon

measures to bring such

students to mainstream and

facilitate them in every

possible manner.

Different

suggestions by

participants

included age

relaxation for

differently-abled

students,

wheelchair friendly

buildings,

scholarship and

fee waivers, and

special transport

facility within

campuses.

Minister Dr. Mazari informed

the gathering that ICT Rights

of Persons with Disability Act

2020 has already been passed.

She said it extends to the

whole of ICT territory and it is

also binding on universities in

this area. She added that

provinces may also adopt this

Act through passage of

resolutions from the respective

constituent assemblies. She

asked HEC to review its

existing policy for differently-

abled students in the light of

this Act.


highlighted HEC’s initiatives to

facilitate differently-abled

students, including

promulgation of HEC policy on

the subject, distribution of

wheelchairs, establishment of

Well Being Centres and

formation of Student Clubs

under Prime Minister’s Kamyab

Jawan Programme.

The President appreciated the

HEC’s efforts to mainstream

such students in the higher

education sector. He observed

that special

attention needs to

be paid to

students with

visual impairment,

hearing disabilities,

or mobility

challenges. He said

that he himself has

taken the task for

defining categories

of differently abled

students so that

there should be a

clear distinction among

students with different needs.

He expected that the VCs will

take lead in implementation of

policies on both the issues of

drug control as well as

facilities for differently abled

students.

Conference on Applied Zoology Government College University, Faisalabad,

Department of Zoology, in collaboration with

Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad jointly rdorganized a two-day thematic, virtual 3

International Conference on Applied Zoology

2020 (ICAZ 2020) under the platform of the

Applied Zoological Society of Pakistan (AZSP).

The purpose of the conference was to address

motivational inspiration of Applied Zoological

Society in the age of uncertainty.

Speakers from 20 universities of Pakistan, Turkey,

Malaysia, Spain, Chile, Italy, Iran, Iraq, and the UK

delivered lectures and shared presentations on

200 abstracts on emerging research and new

challenges in multidisciplinary fields of Applied

Zoology. Through this conference, the AZSP

provided a forum for exchange of information

and experiences with zoologists, encouraging

researchers to make significant research

contributions to their respective fields.

During the conference, a special session was

conducted on COVID-19, wherein experts shed

light on the effects of COVID-19 pandemic on

the higher education sector.

They also underlined the research-oriented

activities carried out amidst the uncertain ndcircumstances due to the 2 wave of the

pandemic.

The President said that he himself has taken the task for dening categories of differently abled students so that there

should be a clear distinction among students with different needs. He

expected that the VCs will take lead in implementation of policies on both the issues of drug control as well as facilities

for differently abled students.

18


Pakistan has finalised 10 project proposals for

funding under the Rapid Research Grant (RRG)

launched in response to COVID-19 crisis. The

grant is aimed to encourage academic research

to strengthen clinical management or public

health response against this virus.

The HEC launched the focused RRG in April 2020

to engage academia in research around the

clinical management of this epidemic. Under the

specialised research initiative, potential project

proposals were invited to contribute to the

much-needed understanding of coronaviruses --

the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome

Coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and COVID-19.

Considering the time-crunch, a specialised panel

was constituted and tasked to complete the

shortlisting in 3-4 weeks. More than 300

applications were received for this grant. After

independent reviews, 58 proposals were

shortlisted based on already announced

eligibility criteria and other necessary

requirements. Later, these proposals were jointly

reviewed by experts of Medical and Biological

Sciences, Engineering and Technology and finally

10 quality projects made it to the last stage after

rigorous scrutiny.

The budget for each of RRG award is up to a

maximum of Rs. 15 million (USD 100,000) with a

maximum project duration of 12 months. These

research projects offer a variety of pragmatic

solution-oriented research, ranging from early

detection diagnostic kits to immune response

and understanding the virus behaviour.

The University of the Punjab has won two grants

-- one for an indigenous, low-cost production of

ultra-pure Taq Polymerase and PCR mix for

COVID-19 clinical diagnostic kits, and the other

for development of a reliable, economical and

high throughput serodiagnosis method for early

detection of COVID-19.

COMSATS University Islamabad has won the

grant for development of RT-LAMP Assay for

early detection of COVID-19, while National

Textile University, Faisalabad research will focus

on development of bioactive hospital textiles

and protective suits against viruses and bacteria

by immobilisation of nanomaterials. The

University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences,

Lahore has won the research grant for

epidemiological disease modelling and

molecular surveillance of SARS-CoV-2, while

DOW University of Health Sciences, Karachi will

be working on IVIG production from

convalescent plasma of COVID-19 survivors, a

low risk, high efficiency passive immunisation

strategy against SARS-CoV-2. Interestingly, the

test results of DOW university research are

already very promising.

Other project winners include the University of

Health Sciences, Lahore (Immunological Virology

and Genetic Basis of COVID-19 Patients), Lahore

University of Management Sciences (Mapping

Immune Response to SARS-COv2 using a

multidisciplinary approach), Aga Khan University,

Karachi (Phylo- and immuno- dynamics of SARS-

CoV-2 infection in Pakistan: relating COVID 19

disease severity in with viral diversity) and Health

Services Academy (HSA), Islamabad

(Computational Modelling for COVID-19

Epidemic in Pakistan: Predictive Modelling of

Disease Morbidity, Mortality and Assessment of

Demands on the Intensive Care Units).

With provision of RRGs, HEC hopes that

academic researchers will come forward to

contribute to better health systems coping with

the real-life challenges.

As many as six more faculty members of

University of the Punjab have been ranked

among the best researchers in another

evaluation sheet of the top two per cent

researchers of the world prepared by Stanford

University, California. The total number of PU

teachers making to the list reaches nine.

The list has been compiled by Prof. John

Ioannidis of Stanford University and his team.

The list has 159,683 persons from all scientific

disciplines from higher education institutions

across the globe. In the evaluation of life-time

research work, three PU Professors were figured

in top two percent researchers of the world while

in the evaluation of one year research work,

another six teachers of Punjab University have

been ranked among top two percent researchers

besides the three.

The nine PU professors include Prof. Dr.

Muhammad Sharif, Dean, Faculty of Science

(ranked in the field of Nuclear & Particle Physics),

Prof. Dr. Khalid Mahmood, Dean, Faculty of

Economics and Management Sciences (ranked in

the field of Information & Library Sciences), Prof.

Dr. Muhammad Akram, Department of

Mathematics (ranked in the field of Artificial

Intelligence & Image Processing), Dr. Hafiz Azhar

Ali Khan, Assistant Professor, Institute of

Agricultural Sciences (ranked in the field of

Biology/Entomology), Dr. Zeeshan Yousaf,

Department of Mathematics (ranked in the field

of Nuclear & Particle Physics), Dr. Muhammad

Younis, Punjab University College of Information

Technology (ranked in the field of Optics), Dr.

Saima Arshad, Department of Mathematics

(ranked in the field of Optics), Dr. Abdul Rehman,

Department of Microbiology & Molecular

Genetics (ranked in the field of Zoology), and Dr.

Nauman Raza, Department of Mathematics

(ranked in the field of Optics).

It is pertinent to mention here that Prof Dr.

Khalid Mahmood is the only professor of

library/information sciences in South Asia who

has been ranked in the list.

The life-time research work evaluation list

includes 81 professors while one-year research

work evaluation list includes 243 teachers from

the higher education institutions in Pakistan.

PU Vice Chancellor Prof. Niaz Ahmad and Pro

Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Saleem Mazhar have

congratulated the PU Professors for achieving

this prestigious rank.

The VC said that the incumbent administration

has taken several initiatives for improvement in

international ranking of the university due to

which PU’s subject-wise and overall ranking has

improved manifold. He said that the PU

administration would provide full support to the

faculty members and researchers who were

doing research having positive socio-economic

impact and making efforts for improvement in

international ranking of the university.

6 More PU Professors in Stanford University’s Best Researchers’ List

6 More PU Professors in Stanford University’s Best Researchers’ List

19

4 PIEAS Faculty Members in Stanford University’s Top Scientists’ ListFour members of Pakistan Institute of

Engineering and Applied Sciences (PIEAS) faculty

have been included in the world’s top two per

cent scientists list published by the Stanford

University, Stanford, California, United States of

America.

The eminent scientists’ list includes two

categories, segregating the career long and

single year (2019) -rankings of the scientists

worldwide. The list consists of around 160,000

researchers and standardises citation metrics

across all researchers and scientific disciplines

worldwide. The year 2019 list names 243

scientists from Pakistan. However, the career-

long-list includes 81 Pakistani researchers. This

study was carried out at the Stanford University,

USA, and was published in October 2020, under

the title “Updated science-wise author databases

of standardised citation indicators”.

The four eminent scientists of PIEAS included in

the Stanford list categorised for the year 2019

research publications are Dr. M. H. Saleem, Dr.

Asifullah Khan, Dr. Muhammad Tufail, and Dr.

Muhammad Rehan.

The research areas of Dr. M. H. Saleem were

Medicinal & Biomolecular Chemistry, Plant

Biology & Botany, Chemistry, while the research

areas of Dr. Asifullah Khan were Artificial

Intelligence & Image Processing, Networking &

Telecommunications, Information &

Communication Technologies. Likewise, the

research areas of Dr. Muhammad Tufail were

Networking & Telecommunications, Nuclear

Medicine & Medical Imaging, Information &

Communication Technologies. And, Dr.

Muhammad Rehan researched on Industrial

Engineering & Automation, Networking &

Telecommunications, and Engineering.

490 Degrees Awarded in GIK Institute’s Convocation

President Dr. Arif Alvi

conferred 490 degrees upon

the students of Ghulam Ishaq

Khan Institute of Sciences and

Technology, Topi, as the thuniversity held its 24

Convocation at the President

House. Following the safety

measures in line with the

Standard Operating

Procedures for COVID-19, a

limited number of students

attended the ceremony.

As many as 432 BS degrees, 55

MS degrees, and three PhD

Degrees were awarded. Yet,

only gold medalists of the

graduating batches

participated in person, while

the rest of graduates, their

families, and faculty witnessed

the ceremony live through a

web link.

In his address, President Dr.

Alvi said that e-learning had a

greater outreach with lesser

expense as compared to the

conventional educational

facilities. He urged the GIK

Institute and other universities

to increase the e-learning

content in the online syllabi.

The President congratulated

the GIK Institute graduates for

their hard work and the

parents and teachers for their

contribution to making the

new generation productive

citizens.

20

Virtual University of Pakistan in collaboration with

Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for

Asia (CEMCA) organised a three-day international

online workshop on “Capacity Building

Programme on Open Education Resources

(OER).”

The workshop aimed to discuss Open Educational

Resources and the prevailing practices in the

world. It provided the participants an opportunity

to understand Open Educational Resources, OER

in using Google, Integration of OER to Teaching

and Learning, Creative Commons Licenses, and

Considering Quality Assurance criteria in OER.

Faculty members from Virtual University of

Pakistan attended the workshop.

Rector Virtual University Mr. Naeem Tariq

inaugurated the workshop. He extended vote of

thanks to CEMCA for organising such a thought-

provoking workshop.

Dr. Nantha Kumar Subramaniam from Open

University of Malaysia was the resource person

for this workshop. He delivered a comprehensive

lecture on “Understanding and Using OER”. The

workshop was managed by Dr. Madhu Parhar,

Director (CEMCA) and Dr. Manas Ranjan

Panigrahi, Senior Programme Officer, Education

(CEMCA).

VU holds Faculty Training on Open Education Resources

Problem-solving research on the issues of farming

community will help increase per acre

productivity, alleviating poverty.

This was stated by University of Agriculture,

Faisalabad, Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Iqrar Ahmad

Khan while addressing the Assistant Professors of

UAF. He showed his concern over the decreasing

portfolio of research. He urged the Assistant

Professors to come up with out-of-the-box

solutions, keeping in view the problems of

farming community, industry and general public.

He said that UAF is committed to taking the lead

for the uplift of our agricultural productivity. He

said that UAF will observe the World Science Day

to promote a research culture for the benefit of

UAF VC Urges Professors to Promote Problem-Solving Research

humanity. He emphasised on a close liaison

between farmers and researchers, as it would pave

the way for efforts to combat agricultural

challenges. He said that UAF has restored 450

acres of the land, adding that precision agriculture

would be carried out to showcase it before the

farming community.

The Vice Chancellor urged the faculty to submit

their research projects to the funding agencies to

promote practical measures. He said that UAF is

making the system flexible to attain international

funding and improve the education quality.

He vowed to enhance the UAF outreach activities

to enlighten farming community with modern

agricultural trends and practices at their doorstep.

21

Korean Agency to Set up Nutrition Centre at UAF

Meanwhile, Dr. Khan inaugurated a state-of-the-

art animal medical treatment and shelter centre

for stray and domestic small animals such as dogs

and cats established by Tahira Animal Welfare

Foundation at Gutwala, Faisalabad. The cats and

dogs enclosures are ready to accommodate

injured animals of Faisalabad and provide them

food and housing. The Vice Chancellor told the

audience that UAF is also running an animal

hospital, equipped with modern facilities and

highly qualified doctors. He said the Faculty of

Veterinary Science UAF has been playing a

significant role in flourishing livestock and poultry

production in the country since 1962.

improved nutrition knowledge about what is a

balanced diet and how important it is. In

addition to the KOICA grant, $1.99 million will

also be awarded for research under this project.

The project will train 50 government officials

including 15 nutrition-related policymakers and

30 master trainers in addition to developing

nutrition education modules and

teaching/learning materials.

The master trainers will train 12,000 community

nutrition education experts such as lady health

supervisors and dietitians to disseminate

nutrition education to people in the provinces.

The PKNC is expected to develop more than 10

different types of fortified food recipes based on

local agricultural products, SOPs for nutrient &

hazard analysis, and nutrient & hazard analysis

of 350 samples during the project period.

Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA)

has approved a grant of $7 million for

establishment of Pak-Korea Nutrition CentrE

(PKNC) at the University of Agriculture (UAF)

Faisalabad to deal with issues pertaining to

children and women malnutrition in Pakistan.

In this regard, KOICA Pakistan office at the

Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Pakistan has

signed Record of Discussion (RoD) for award of

the grant for the project, "Establishment of PKNC

to Improve Child and Community Nutrition." The

agreement is aimed at uplifting the most

neglected sector of nutrition in Pakistan with

assistance from Higher Education Commission

(HEC), Pakistan and the UAF.

As many as 120,000 people, especially women

and children, are expected to benefit from the

five-year project. Educating people about the

significance of nutrition will help them have an

22

The Institute of Business

Administration (IoBM), Karachi thorganised a two-day 4

International Conference on

Islamic Banking and Finance

(ICIBF -2020).

Dr. Ishrat Husain, Adviser to

the Prime Minister on

Institutional Reforms and

Austerity, was the chief guest

of the Conference, which

virtually assembled a large

number of national and

international speakers from

the USA, UK, Malaysia, UAE,

and other countries.

The ICIBF-2020 observed the

COVID-19 pandemic’s impact

on Micro, Small & Medium

Enterprises (MSMEs) and

deliberated on the way

forward for Islamic Financial

Institutions.

Addressing the Conference,

Dr. Husain shared two distinct

advantages of Islamic

banking.

He said that all the

transactions are based on a

real asset in the Islamic

banking, adding that the

Islamic banking is a risk-

sharing arrangement and not

a risk-shifting plan. He called

upon the Islamic bankers to

replicate pertinent

conventional banking models.

He was confident that

investments in low-cost,

affordable housing schemes

will bring positive results and

that the Government of

Pakistan is promoting this

initiative.

Mr. Talib S. Karim, President

IoBM; Mr. Bashir

Janmohammad, Chancellor

IoBM; Syed Amir Ali,

President, and CEO,

BankIslami Pakistan; and Mr.

Ahmed Shuja Kidwai,

President and CEO, Al Baraka

Bank Pakistan also spoke in

the Conference.

Speakers said that Islamic

banking is progressing in

Pakistan where conventional

banks are setting up Islamic

banking counters.

They shared that the asset

base of Islamic banking grew

21 per cent from July 2019 to

June 2020. The deposits

touched Rs. 3 trillion, while

the share of Islamic banks is

16.9 per cent. They said that

90% of enterprises in Pakistan

are Small and Medium-Sized

Enterprises that provide 80%

of employment outside of the

agriculture sector.

Dr. Shujaat Mubarik, Associate

Dean CBM, IoBM, conducted a

post-conference workshop on

How to Write and Publish for

Impact Factor.

The workshop aimed to equip

the participants with the

essential understanding of

research paper writing

strategies.

It discussed how to write the

introduction, literature review,

and methodologies; how to

become a smart and

professional academic writer;

how to design a research

paper; how to avoid desk

rejections; and, how to target

the impact factor journal.

IoBM Conference Stresses Promotion of Islamic Banking

23

said that luckily, we have not

seen any breast cancer death

cases during the COVID.

Dr. Nida Wahid Bashir,

Consultant Breast & General

Surgeon, Dr. Ziauddin Hospital,

said that cancer in young

females, pregnant females and

in between the tenure of breast

feed are always aggressive and

have ability to spread faster.

“Breast cancer in pregnant

women is the worst kind of

cancer we have come across.”

Ziauddin University held a

virtual seminar for breast

cancer awareness, entitled

“Early Detection Saves Lives!” in

collaboration with Pink Ribbon.

Addressing the seminar, Pro-

Chancellor Ziauddin University

Dr. Nida Hussain said that

breast cancer is one of the

leading causes of deaths and

most common cancer among

women all over the world,

including Pakistan. She stressed

the need for stopping the

cancer at the early stage.

Dr. Nida Hussain suggested the

younger women of age group

20 to 30 to make breast screen

and self-examination a habit at

least once a month.

Talking about the challenges

that oncologists had faced

during COVID-19, Prof. Tariq

Siddiqui, Director Cancer

Centre, Dr. Ziauddin Hospital,

She underlined that whenever

women feel unusual changes in

their breasts, without any delay

they need to get it checked by

a doctor.

Dr. Zubia Masood, Consultant

Breast & General Surgeon, Dr.

Ziauddin Hospital, talked about

the risk factors in breast cancer.

She said that there are two

types of risk factors in breast

cancer, genetic and

environmental factors.

Ziauddin University’s Seminar for Breast Cancer Awareness

need to look towards the West for adopting

everything”. He said that investment made by

parents, society and the government in women education should not be wasted and the country

should benefit from their abilities and skills.

Vice Chancellor Hina Tayyaba Khalil

congratulated the graduating students,

highlighting the hard work and commitment of

the faculty to their efforts to support the

students throughout their education process.

Eleven students won gold medals; 14 won the

Roll of Honour, and 68 others got distinction.

Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design (PIFD) rd held its 3 Convocation, in which 845 Bachelor’s

and seven MPhil degrees were awarded.

President Dr. Arif Alvi was chief guest of the

convocation held under the patronage of Vice

Chancellor Prof. Ms. Hina Tayyaba Khalil. Vice

Chancellors, Government office bearers, officers

of Education Ministry, educationists, industry

experts, and designers also graced the event

with their presence. Addressing the convocation, President Alvi said

that: “We have our own values, so we do not

rdPIFD holds 3 Convocation

24

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