VCs Meet Finance Minister: FinancialCrisis at Universities Discussed
ISLAMABAD: Vice Chancellors of 10 public sector universitiesmet Dr. Abdul Hafeez Sheikh, Federal Minister for Finance here Friday todiscuss provision of additional grant to universities to cater for the 50 percent increase announced last year and the 15 per cent increase this year by theGovernment. The meeting also discussed World Bank funded US $ 300 millionTertiary Education Support Programme.
The Vice Chancellors thanked the Minister for hiscontinued support to the higher education sector and posited that as part ofthe Government they are cognizant of the dire economic straits Pakistan is in.However, salary increases announced by the Government, makes the universities’budget non-sustainable.
The Minister heard the Vice Chancellors’ point ofview patiently and said he understood the delicacy of the situation. After adetailed discussion he asked Special Secretary Finance, Rana Asad Amin todiscuss the issues and come up with a rational relief for the universities inneed.
The Vice Chancellors who were headed by ChairmanExecutive Committee of Vice Chancellors, Eng Imtiaz Gillani also requested thatthis relief should be embedded as part of recurring budget. They thanked the Finance Minister forunderstanding the predicament and assured him that they will redouble theirefforts to be more creative to look for alternative source of funding.
The Finance Minister appreciated the positiveapproach of the heads of institutions and suggested that as two pillars ofGovernment, such meetings should be held more often for better understandingbetween both stakeholders.
The meeting was also attended by Dr. Javaid R.Laghari, Chairman Higher Education Commission, Dr. Sohail Naqvi, ExecutiveDirector HEC, Dr. Mazhar Saeed, Director General, Administration andCoordination HEC, Rana Asad Amin , Special Secretary Finance, Mr. SeeratAsghar, Additional Secretary Finance and Mr. Asif Shaikh, PSDP Specialist Planning Commission. The vice chancellorsincluded Dr. Nasser Ali Khan, Director IMS, Peshawar, Ahmad Farooq Bazai, ViceChancellor Balochistan University of Management and Sciences, Quetta, Mrs.Sultana Balouch, Vice Chancellor Sardar Bahadur Khan Women University, Quetta,Dr. Mujahid Kamran, University of the Punjab, Dr. Nizamauddin, Gujrat, Dr.Nilofer Shaikh, Khairpur, Dr. A. Q Mughal, Sindh Agriculture UniversityTandojam, Dr. Masoon Yasinzai, Quaid-e- Azam University and Dr. Najma Najam, Karakorum International University, Gilgit.