Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed, Chairman, Higher Education Commission (HEC) has said that governance and quality assurance are the key challenges faced by the higher education sector of Pakistan. Talking to media persons at HEC Secretariat in Islamabad on Thursday, the Chairman urged all the stakeholders including university leadership, faculty and the relevant government departments to take immediate steps to address the governance issues of public sector universities, which ultimately affect the quality of education and research. “Let us be very clear about it. More we focus on improving governance mechanisms of our higher learning institutions, more will it enhance the quality of education and research and also resolve the financial challenges that many universities are grappling with,” said the Chairman. He said that despite these challenges, the higher education sector has shown remarkable performance in the last two decades. “Since its inception in 2002, HEC has made strenuous efforts to focus on all areas important for development of higher education be it faculty development, promotion of research, technological readiness, quality assurance policies, infrastructure development, international collaboration, university sports, etc.” Appreciating the Government for taking care of higher education sector despite financial crunch, he urged the federal and provincial governments to allocate more resources for the sector. “Funding of higher education sector is stagnant for last many years while the number of universities has been increasing quite rapidly. I appreciate the Government of Sindh for providing a substantial amount to the provincial universities in addition to the federal grant. We will request other provinces to follow suit and provide a good share of funding to the universities.” Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed said that an ecosystem has been developed for our universities to grow in a holistic manner and compete with the rest of the world. “Today our faculty and researchers have the best facilities available for teaching and research. Though our researchers have produced a lot of research in almost all disciplines but what they need to ponder upon is what impact their research has on country’s social and economic needs. There is no lack of funding for research, our researchers only need to focus on the right areas that have a direct impact on the society and economy.” The Chairman said that the groundwork has been done to make country’s higher education technologically ready for the future. “We may not be the best in technology readiness, but I can assure you that we are making all preparations that our faculty and students require for the swiftly changing digital age. Our IT team is carrying out an extensive plan to update the systems in such a manner that our higher education community can easily go along with rest of the world.” The Chairman also highlighted different policies that HEC has launched to improve the quality of education and research. “We continuously engage with all the stakeholders to ensure that policies are made in time and as per requirement of the society, country’s economic needs and as per international best practices. Our undergraduate and graduate education policies provide a strong foundation for universities to offer best quality degree programmes. HEC is also focusing on all accreditation related matters including opening of new institutions as well as offering professional degree programmes.” The Chairman also mentioned HEC scholarships for BS, MS and PhD studies at national and international universities. “Our scholars have proved that, if provided opportunities, they can do wonders.” Highlighting achievements in sports, Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed said that HEC is serving as a nursery for sports men and women. “Many players who have been trained at HEC platform are now performing in national and international championships and bringing laurels for the country.” In response to questions, the Chairman underscored the necessity for universities to establish academia-industry liaisons, making internships mandatory for degree completion. Additionally, he confirmed that entrepreneurship courses have been integrated to help students become job creators to better coup with the job shortage in the market. Addressing concerns about rising educational costs, the Chairman noted that while controlling university fees is beyond HEC’s jurisdiction, the commission remains committed to facilitating institutions through policies, funding and scholarships. Executive Director HEC Dr. Zia Ul-Qayyum, Member (Research and Innovation) Dr. Bushra Mirza, Consultant Quality Assurance, Dr. Anwar-ul-Hassan Gilani, Managing Director, National Academy for Higher Education, Ms. Noor Amna Malik, Adviser Global Engagement Mr. Awais Ahmad, Adviser Scholarships Mr. Muhammad Raza Chohan, Director Media and Coordination Mr. Tariq Iqbal, Director Planning Mr. Irfan Ullah, Director Finance Ms. Samina Durrani, Director IT Mr. Naveed Tahir and Director Sports Mr. Javed Memon were also present on the occasion.