The Higher Education Commission aims "to facilitate institutions of higher learning to serve as engines for socio-economic development of Pakistan" as stated in its mission. Along these lines, the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan took the initiative to finance proposals of completed interdisciplinary applied research for prototype development and industrial value addition for tech. based product or process development. In this way, HEC envisages helping the productive minds of Pakistan to impact the economy through the development of new and emerging technologies. This initiative enabled the research ecosystem lied with HEIs/ Universities to be available for the industry with financial and technical assistance (IP, Licensing, and Commercialization) through academic scientists for the solution of indigenous industrial problems.
This program has already funded 200 joint academia-industry projects and over 160 licensed to industry for mass scaling and commercialization. A good number of such projects have already started yielding revenue and which is shared with all stakeholders.
Considering the facts above, Planning Commission/ CDWP approved the project's enhanced scope to give the 4th Call for proposals. Hence Ph.D. Faculty Members (who have ready research, lab scale, or pre-prototype) should submit the proposals with the consortia of industry and academic partners in the following thematic areas;
- Climate Change and its impact on the socioeconomics of Pakistan (Agriculture, Food Security, Urban Development, Pollution, Floods, Biodiversity Conservation, etc.)
- Telecommunication, Information and Technology/Computers (applications in Govt. services, health, textile, agriculture & dairy, etc.)
- Engineering Sciences, Micro Electronics, Water, Power, Energy, and Fleet Management
- Biotechnology and Allied fields (in Health, Agriculture, Textile, Leather & Dairy, etc.)
- Material Sciences/Man-Made Material (Nanotechnology)
- Robotics, Defence, and Military needs
- Any other applied discipline which is inductive or conducive to the success of products developed or upscale the process of Industrial level manufacturing.
The proposed funded projects would be expected to develop a product or service which would positively impact, inter alia, the economy, solve a current problem, meet a market need, utilize local raw materials, move current products up the value chain, create large scale employment, and generate the revenue.
The proposals need to be academia-industry joint multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional leading to products or services which solve a current problem of industry/ society or identify a new opportunity of business that leads to positive cash-flows.
