THE EDUCATION sector of Pakistan needs a long overhaul in order to get the sustainable result that is in accord with the future challenges. The incumbent government of Pakistan is focusing to make country a hub of knowledge based economy by surfacing several initiatives aiming at reforming and restructuring the education system.


The industry-academia linkage is highly important for RandD initiatives and curriculum designing of the universities. The curriculum currently being taught in universities is outdated and doesnt cater to industrial requirements. The universities role is to produce trained human resource in respective fields whereas industry needs to absorb that resource and develop its skills to play exponential role in the national development of the country.


The interdisciplinary research centers must be established in order to bring interdepartmental harmony as well as produce problem solving researches which can address the industrial as well as social issues. The universities also need to establish centre of excellences from where industries could seek solutions to their problems.


The science and technological promotion effect can be compounded if coupled with innovation. The innovation can bring cutting edge technologies and solutions at a cheaper rate than conventional technologies. The emphasis of education must be to aggravate the innovative and creative skills of students rather than creating bookworms with rusty mind incapable of envisaging the need of hour and deliberating the solution.


Pakistan Science Talent Farming scheme is one such initiative that is meant for nurturing and thriving human capital in SandT domains. Higher Education Commission (HEC) budget has been raised to 71 billion. The indigenous scholarships and the foreign linkages with universities have accounted for various educational needs and launching of several joint initiatives in different fields including agriculture, water resource management, information technology, and climate change and environmental studies.


The government has formulated a long-term roadmap as the Vision 2025 for a developed and prosperous Pakistan addressing key sector of the country. The Vision 2025 stands on 7 Pillars. Pillar-I emphasized developing human and social capital. It seeks to bring human resource development to the top of national agenda by substantial expansion in levels of education as well as improvements in the quality of education. A larger share of the GDP, at least four per cent to education, would have to be allocated.


The HEC tried to develop sustainable, dynamic and internationally competitive higher education sector in Pakistan that makes a major contribution to economic prosperity, national wellbeing and the expansion and dissemination of knowledge. Due to collective and concerted effort of HEC in coordination with the major stakeholders, the output in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) of the country have shown tremendous improvements and Pakistan has been acknowledged as rising star by the international higher education community in a number of disciplines. Today many Pakistani universities are seen on the globe.


The government had allocated Rs20 billion for 191 development projects of the universities and HEC during 2014-15. The amount was divided between approved ongoing and un-approved schemes. The youth is the real driving force towards a prosperous Pakistan; therefore, government has launched numerous initiatives to get the youth bulge dividend by developing human resources.


The women education also needs attention and value in order to bring this segment of society towards empowerment. The underprivileged fractions of the communities must be brought into the mainstream literacy sphere in order to improve the rural education and access the far flung areas.


The education sector hence needs several improvements although the government priorities are upright. The gradual improvements are evident but still there is need to cook more and with time constraint the system will mature and eminent researchers, scholars, in SandT domains will be produced in volumes by HEIs in future provided the perseverance and commitment of HEIs, industry, government and the other stakeholders.

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