AN ADDRESS TO AGA KHAN UNIVERSITY 2004 CONVOCATION

Shamsh Kassim-Lakha, H.I., S.I.
President, Aga Khan University

Bismillah-Ir-Rahman-Ir-Rahim.

Honourable chief guest, Your Excellency, the Governor of Sindh, Dr. Ishrat Ul Ebad Khan;
Chairman Saidullah Khan Dehlavi and members of the Board of Trustees;
Excellencies, graduates and parents;
Members of the faculty and staff;
Alumni of Aga Khan University;
Distinguished ladies and gentlemen.

Assalam-o-Alaikum.

On behalf of the University, it is my great pleasure to welcome you all to this, the 17th Convocation Ceremony of Aga Khan University. May I extend, on behalf of all of us, our special welcome to the honourable Governor of Sindh who has so kindly graced this important event in the lives of our graduands today.

Convocations are occasions for celebration, reflections, inspiration and a time for graduands to look ahead as you move towards the next phase of your lives. As I look at you today, this class of 2004, ready and eager to embark on the next step in their life’s journey, I am reminded of the great physician and philosopher, Ibn Sina, who said:

“My profession is to be forever journeying, to travel about the Universe so that I may know all its conditions”

Graduands, as you begin your journey to explore your universe, we hope that during your time at this institution we have equipped you with the skills and the know-how to determine a path, navigate your future journey and enable you to find meaningful and worthwhile opportunities to put your education to the test. We hope that as you travel down your own “best” path, you will look back fondly at your time here and know that AKU has challenged you, inspired you, encouraged you, and motivated you in whatever academic discipline you have chosen to study. You have been evaluated rigorously, have emerged strong and ready to graduate, and today you have become a part of AKU’s achievement, and AKU will forever be a part of you. 

However, let us not forget that your success today is linked to the extraordinary support, encouragement and help of your family and friends, who have sacrificed much, to help you achieve your goals.  We extend our congratulations to them, as they share in your celebration and your joy today.

I must also extend special appreciation and congratulations to the faculty of our University, in whose hands we placed the heavy responsibility of imparting knowledge and skills, morals and values, ethics and judgement to their students.

Graduates, parents, faculty, congratulations on this wonderful day.

This morning, 62 graduates will receive their diplomas as registered nurses, building on the success of the University's first academic programme established in 1980. We are equally proud to honour today, 58 graduates who will receive their Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees, and four who have completed their Masters of Science in Nursing… the first and only such programme in Pakistan. 

Also this morning, 76 will receive their MBBS degrees, seven graduates their Masters in Epidemiology and Biostatistics; and three graduates will be awarded their Masters in Health Policy and Management. Thirty-four men and women will receive their Masters in Education from our Institute for Educational Development.

All of these men and women graduating today can take pride in the fact that they entered the University on a needs-blind basis, solely on merit, competed on merit and are graduating today on merit alone. To facilitate the education of these meritorious graduates, 44 per cent of them received some form of scholarship or financial assistance on the basis of merit and need.

Graduands, might I also mention that today you are not only our graduates, but through this rite of passage will become our alumni, representing this institution and serving as its great resource. AKU urges you all to keep in touch with us as your travel your path in life. Your success will be our success. Share with us your achievements and tell us also how your Alma Mater can become stronger in attaining its objectives.

It is customary at convocations to pass on to the graduands some lessons out of life and to give a message of hope. As you move to the next phase of your life, I suggest you keep three constants in mind which I believe will transcend the passage of time and serve as your beacons of light.

The first is the element of social responsibility which is fundamental to your education. It is the ability to contribute to the society in which you live. We share your aspirations to become the next generations of physicians, nurses, teachers and educators, but we also expect that you will become contributing members to your society, to your nation and to humanity at large. It means being a good citizen…upholding societal values…not only protecting the environment, but also improving it…and contributing to the building of a strong and equitable society, good government and good governance.

The second constant is that of lifelong learning. In our fast-paced radically changing world of today, much of what you will learn will need to be built upon the capacity to understand and process new information. This I believe will be key to surviving in the world today and to your success tomorrow. I encourage you to seek a lifetime of learning, creating an insatiable intellectual appetite. To adapt the words of Winston Churchill – “You have not yet reached the end of the education process, nor even the beginning of the end, but you have now come to the end of the beginning, for learning is a lifelong undertaking”.

The third is your responsibility to provide leadership. Although far more accessible today, a university education is a privilege. Society and your country look to you to take your places as leaders of the next generation. You will have many opportunities to practise leadership and I encourage you to assume leadership positions in your professional and personal environments, serving as role models.

As you no doubt have observed during your years at AKU, as you have grown and matured, so has your Alma Mater. Universities are generally seen as institutions for development of students but their roles are far greater. They are created by contributions from society, whether through taxation or philanthropy, and are intended for the benefit and development of society. Thus, the development of human resources as well as the knowledge and skills required to understand and solve problems confronting society are the relevant outcomes of diverse and distinct programmatic activities of the Universities.

The mission of AKU is dedicated to providing meaningful contributions to society through strength in research and excellence in education. They lead to preparation of individuals and society for crucial decisions that result in far-reaching consequence. Furthermore, AKU operates on four core principles, of attaining the highest quality possible; of being relevant to society; of creating a positive impact and providing access to those most deserving. Inspired by Islamic ethics, humanistic ideals and the philosophy of the Aga Khan Development Network, the University is committed to building an environment that fosters intellectual freedom, distinction in scholarship, pluralism, compassion, and humanity’s collective responsibility for a sustainable physical, social and cultural environment.

Before proceeding further it is appropriate for the University to acknowledge with gratitude the support of our International and National academic partners and our equally diverse donors and volunteers who have given much of their time and intellect to this institution. They have contributed generously but in return they seek only the assurance of quality in the appropriate development of human resources, research, and application and dissemination of knowledge for the benefit of society.

I should like to take this opportunity to particularly thank, through our chief guest, Honourable Governor Ishrat Ul Ebad, the Governments of Pakistan and especially Sindh for their consistent facilitation of the University’s academic endeavours. Thank you sir.

In recognition of the University’s experience and commitment to excellence, AKU has been invited by the Governments of Pakistan and the provinces to conduct research and to participate in policy dialogues on health and education. This confidence on the part of the Government reflects the University’s growing stature as a genuinely national institution.

In the words of the Chancellor, His Highness the Aga Khan, “To fulfil its role, and remain true to its charter, the University must continue to grow. It must continue to improve its capabilities, to impart knowledge and solve complex problems which increasingly have their roots in global issues. It must increase its capability to operate on a world scale in order to be effective at a community level.” [1]

In pursuit of its wide-ranging charter and mission, in Pakistan and other countries of the developing world, the University has broaden its capacity beyond the concerns of health care and education to philosophical, religious and cultural determinants of behaviour including biological and social determinants of human development that have life long effects. The range of expertise greatly enhances the University’s potential for contributing to society through understanding, application and growth of knowledge, and advocacy, particularly when complex conditions influence decisions in opposing ways.

Under the guidance of the Chancellor and the Board of Trustees, and building upon its experience in Pakistan, the University in now active on three continents, with ten teaching sites spread over seven countries. The University is contributing through education and training in Advanced Nursing Studies in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, where over 450 full time students or appropriately 25 per cent of our current student body, are enrolled currently in various in-service and degree programmes. This year, the University commenced Postgraduate Medical Education in Nairobi and Dar-es-Salam, based at the hospitals of the Aga Khan Health Service in East Africa. In the United Kingdom, AKU’s Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations is engaged in the study and research of Muslim heritage and culture in all their richness and diversity. The University is also contributing to nursing education, training and practice in Afghanistan and Syria. Planning has begun for a regional Institute for Educational Development in East Africa for improvement of education in schools, based on experience gained in Pakistan and on research.

Relevant to our national and international roles is the proposed major investment in a new campus of the Faculty of the Arts and Sciences here in Karachi. When in operation, its programmes will develop expertise in specific academic disciplines and contribute greatly to multidisciplinary studies of the sciences, the arts and the humanities as well as concerns of human development, economic growth and human settlements including graduate studies in a variety of professions.

In concluding this address, left me turn again to the graduates. This day serves as a significant milestone in your lives. The worrisome question for several years will be your choices of many potential paths leading to a better understanding of knowledge and the application of skills in a world beset with change. But as you travel about in Ibne Sina’s universe, “To know all its conditions”, the guidelines for navigating yourselves in the future relate to your respective missions, from which you derive your goals. And the guidelines for achieving your goals are derived from societal ethics and values.

Thus, it is important to recall Al Kindi’s wisdom that “you accept knowledge because it teaches you values”. It is therefore AKU’s hope that in attempting to provide you with knowledge, it has succeeded in imparting values that will wisely guide your future choices.

The University will watch the development of your careers with interest in order to learn about the impact of its programmes, even as the University itself hopes that you will follow and contribute to its growth and performance.

May Allah guide your future steps and bless your sincere efforts with success.

Sukriya.