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ISLAMABAD: Imparting skill-based knowledge to students will better help in accelerating the process of development and economic growth, this was the crux of a meeting held between Chairman Higher Education Commission (HEC) Pakistan, Prof Dr Mukhtar Ahmad and Vice-Chancellor University of Sargodha (UoS), Prof Dr Qaisar Abbas here on Thursday.

According to details, UoS VC Dr Qaisar Abbas called on the HEC chairman to discuss the issues and challenges related to higher education.

During the meeting, Dr Mukhtar Ahmad stated: “Education, skills, and technical training are at the heart of economic growth that is sustainable, inclusive, and adds value. Both the latent and active workforces need to be built up for future investment and self-employment.” He added that management training programmes and business incubators can help a lot in this regard.

Dr Mukhtar further expressed that effective industry participation is one of the most important parts of the skill development system that is missing in Pakistan. He said this makes it harder for graduates to get skills that employers want, leading to making businesses less competitive.

There is a dire need for focusing on training as an investment to produce technically equipped students who could better compete in the market, said Dr Qaisar Abbas, adding that an unequivocal and clearly articulated national agenda for skills development should be introduced as a policy at higher education institutions.

The UoS VC stated that linkage between industry and academia is essential for transforming the higher education sector, enabling it to compete on global level. By strengthening ties between academia and industry, Pakistan can also achieve economic prosperity, he stressed.

Moreover, he said, “We must focus on human resource development and equip our youth with the skills necessary to fully explore domestic and international markets.”

The HEC chairman praised the VC for his work to educate people from underprivileged groups and told him to focus on the quality of education if he wants to make real changes in society.

Dr Qaisar Abbas also invited the HEC chairman to the upcoming event of 20 years celebrations of academic excellence, research productivity, knowledge sharing and global outlook.