Aimed at creating future female VCs and Rectors, the project has already trained more than 120 women in 5 earlier cohorts in Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi, and Peshawar
Islamabad, May __, 2023: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) via its Higher Education Development in Pakistan (HEDP) project concluded the 6th cohort of the Women Leadership Program. The training sessions took place at the NAHE regional Hub at Baluchistan University of Information Technology and Management Sciences (BUITEMS) in Quetta from May 8-12, 2023. Thirty future female leaders from all public sector universities across the Baluchistan province attended the training. Women from all disciplines – medical, engineering, humanities, and others participated. Most of these are mid-career professionals working as Heads of Departments, Registrars, and senior faculty members. This program is a crucial step towards building the capacity of women leaders in the higher education sector of Pakistan. The program kicked off under the leadership of Vice Chancellor SABS University of Arts Design and Heritage, Professor Dr. Arabella Bhutto who delivered detailed sessions on Social Influencers and Women identity, Time Management and People Management.
The project has already trained more than 120 women in 5 earlier cohorts of trainings in Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi, and Peshawar. It is essential for women leaders to understand the inner workings of the higher education sector and navigate the challenges they may face in leadership roles. The program focused on governance in higher education, recruitment policies, managing work-life balance, gender and workplace communication, public procurement rules, financial management and strategic communication. The program also provides personal and professional development opportunities and exposes participants to international best practices in women's leadership. This knowledge and exposure can enable future women leaders to prepare themselves to transform higher education institutions into demand-driven institutes, bridging the gender gap in higher education.
The program is an outcome of various consultations and roundtables held by NAHE in 2020-21 early during the project life, where the need for capacity building – especially in the areas of leadership, governance and management was evident. It was observed that very few women reach top leadership position at universities. HEC plans to empower existing women leaders through capacity-building programs as well as nurture potential and upcoming women for leadership positions in the academia.
The participants appreciated the efforts to encourage women up in the management cadre and reinstated that these efforts are essential towards promoting gender equality and women's empowerment in higher education. The project has also planned a structured mentorship to ensure the sustainability of this program. The women trained will act as mentors/ training trainers and will pass on the learning to other women in their university or cluster of women in their geographical area.
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