Islamabad, May 27, 2025: Mrs. Anar Akylbekovna, the Chairman of the Board/Rector of Astana Medical University, Kazakhstan, called on Prof. Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed, Chairman Higher Education Commission (HEC) on Tuesday.
The visiting dignitary was accompanied by H.E. Mr. Yerzhan Kistafin, the Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Pakistan, and the Pro-Rector Academics of Astana Medical University. Dr. Mazhar Saeed, Executive Director HEC, and Mr. Awais Ahmad, In-charge Global Engagement Division, were also present in the meeting.
The agenda of the meeting was to explore avenues for strengthening academic linkages, fostering research partnerships, and exchanging best practices in the domain of medical education, quality assurance, and institutional governance.
Considering the pivotal role of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) in regulating and promoting medical education in Pakistan, Dr. Imad, representative of Pakistan Medical and Dental Council, also attended the meeting. He provided an overview of the accreditation process and evaluation criteria for foreign medical institutions seeking recognition in Pakistan. Both sides also recognized the language barrier and emphasized the need to develop language training initiatives in order to facilitate faculty and student mobility.
The Ambassador of Kazakhstan appreciated HEC for organizing the Pak-Kazakh Universities Forum which led to the establishment of Consortium of HEIs between both the countries. Furthermore, the Ambassador proposed the recruitment of Pakistani students who wish to pursue Higher education in Kazakhstan through HEC and proposed the establishment of a Joint Commission to institutionalize bilateral collaboration.
The delegation is also scheduled to visit various medical universities in Pakistan such as National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS), Rawalpindi Medical University (RMU), Shifa Tameer-e-Milat University, University of Health Sciences (UHS), and King Edward Medical University (KEMU).
