ISLAMABAD: Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal on Wednesday said the government is committed to educating every child as it is their fundamental right, saying the government had decided to offer 20,000 scholarships to unemployed graduates across the country.
Addressing an international summit in Islamabad on Wednesday, the minister emphasized that education was inevitable for the nation’s progress and development.
He thanked the United States for its support in the higher education sector in the country. The minister urged the HEC to produce skilled labour as per the needs of the market.
It is very important for the universities to be prepared and be equipped with latest technology to deal with the modern day challenges, Minister Prof Ahsan Iqbal speaks at the @USAID_Pakistan ‘s International Summit on Higher Education & Workforce Development in the 21st Century pic.twitter.com/TRQ93u33m7
— M/o Planning Development & Special Initiatives (@PlanComPakistan) November 30, 2022
He said: “In this era of information technology, we have to focus and produce students as per the requirements of the market.” The minister expressed the hope that the Youth Development Initiatives (YDI) recently launched by the prime minister will enhance skills of students across the country.
21st century universities have moved away from traditional higher education. We should develop capacity among students to adapt to the fast technological, environmental, social, and economic changes. Federal Minister Ahsan Iqbal@betterpakistan @USAID_Pakistan @UNDP_Pakistan pic.twitter.com/frvuXM9TvN
— M/o Planning Development & Special Initiatives (@PlanComPakistan) November 30, 2022
Ahsan Iqbal revealed the government had decided to offer 20,000 scholarships to unemployed graduates across the country. “The govt has decided to provide 20,000 scholarships to unemployed graduates,” he said, adding that the federal government was committed to providing the underprivileged class access to education.
The minster further announced that scholarships would also be awarded to students of far-flung areas of the country under Youth Development Initiatives (YDI), recently launched by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The summit was attended by US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome, Senator of Utah State Dr Keith Grover, the chairman Higher Education Commission (HEC) and others.
Earlier, the Higher Education Commission (HEC) announced fully funded scholarships for studies in China for the session 2023-24.
The Higher Education Commission has set December 15, 2022, deadline to apply for scholarships in Chinese universities.
HEC has invited applications from Azad Jammu & Kashmir and Pakistani students to study and conduct research in various fields at the best universities in China.
The deadline to submit an online application on the HEC portal www.scholarship.hec.gov.pk under learning opportunities abroad is Thursday, 15th December 2022.
To submit an online application on China Scholarship Council’s portal under category A (agency No. 5861), please visit Campuschina.org.
