Higher Education in Pakistan: Challenges to Reform

The ferment about the crisis faced by Pakistan's higher education system has crystallized into action and definite hope. The civic and political will of the Pakistani diaspora, philanthropists and policy-makers to reform higher education in the country was immeasurably strengthened this weekend in Boston. The Pak-Millennium Conference 2002, organized by The Boston Group, brought together policy-makers, educationists and intellectuals from Pakistan and the US - to agree on the immediate and long-term steps needed for transforming Pakistan's universities and colleges into world-class seats of learning.

The message from the conference was clear. At the end of two days - a full day of policy dialogue and a day of public panels, the consensus of the house was: to build a vibrant Pakistan in the next decades, it is vital that we ourselves produce the leaders, thinkers and problem-solvers, who will lay the foundations of a progressive, tolerant society and revive the confidence of the nation; the need is urgent, and our institutions of higher education have a critical role in producing the thought leadership we so badly lack; and though much hard work is required, the problems are not insurmountable, a process has already started, and we now need to strengthen the community of reformers who will lead the effort.

The conference makes public a process of reform that has gone on quietly over the last year both within and outside of the government, through a Task Force on Improvement of Higher Education in Pakistan and a Study Group on Higher Education. The former was constituted by the Minister for Education, Ms. Zobaida Jalal, and Co-Chaired by Syed Babar Ali, Pro-Chancellor LUMS, and Dr. Shamsh Kassim-Lakha, President Aga Khan University. The latter was constituted by the Minister for Science and Technology, Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman. President Musharraf has now acted on the recommendations of these committees. The decision to abolish the UGC has been taken in principle and the Steering Committee on Higher Education has been established for short-term reform and the Higher Education Commission for long-term reform. 

At the conference itself, the signal from the policy-makers was clear. Five members of the Steering Committee as well as Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman, stated unambiguously their commitment to higher education reform, as well as the support they need to make the vision real. The need is to mobilize groups such as The Boston Group, and more generally the civil society and the Pakistani diaspora in debate on the issues; and most importantly to provide the expertise to bootstrap the system and fully engage in the process with them.  The engagement of civil society in this process is crucial, and one hopes that the openness of the discussions at the conference has set the stage for future discourse. Dr. Shamsh Kassim-Lakha and Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman demonstrated a rather unusual ability to listen intently to the suggestions and comments, as well as rather strong criticisms on how to execute, implement and manage reforms.

The participant list at the conference was impressive. Many of the major stakeholders who will have a decisive impact on the future of higher education were present. For instance, Dr. Shamsh Kassim-Lakha, Chair of the Steering Committee and who enjoys the status of Minister of State; Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman, head designate of the Higher Education Commission; Syed Babar Ali, Pro-Chancellor LUMS; Dr. S.T.K. Naim, Chairperson Pakistan Council on Science and Technology; Dr. Pervez Hoodboy; Dr. Hamid Kizilbash; Dr. Sohail Naqvi; the Vice-Chancellors of the Universities of Karachi and Peshawar, Dr. Zafar Saied Saify and Dr. Zulfiqar Gilani, participated in the deliberations of both days. International experts were equally impressive, such as Dr. Henry Rosovsky, Dean Emeritus  Harvard University; Dr. Robert Edwards, President Emeritus, Bowdoin College; Dr. Lou Wells, Herbert F. Johnson, Professor of International Management, Harvard Business School, and Dr. Richard Larson, Director of the Center for Advanced Educational Studies, MIT.

On key issues confronting higher education, there was remarkable consensus between the participants. The strait-jacket role of the government in higher education, the lack of quality faculty, the lack of fiscal resources, outdated curricula, and the total absence of research were agreed first-order problems that need to be addressed. The problem of quality faculty was a recurring theme in the deliberations of the group, and one of the most important causes was felt to be the lack of academic freedom and intellectual stimulation. In addition, the group strongly felt that the focus of any reform effort needs to be the university, otherwise it is bound to be rejected as an imposed process.

In addition, it was the sense of the house that policies cannot, and should not, be designed and implemented in the dark. It is crucial that we build a priori mechanisms and metrics for monitoring reform. In fact, a continual system of reform evaluation needs to be in place even as the reforms are being implemented, to maximize the effectiveness of the resources.

There was also a clear acknowledgement by the participants that all wisdom cannot possibly reside with the small group assembled in Boston. This was stated repeatedly by Dr. Shamsh Kassim-Lakha and underscored by Professor Hamid Kizilbash. The need to immediately widen the net and directly engage the faculty and the universities in the process of reform was termed a high priority item. The urgency of this was apparent, since it was felt that while political will is present, it was imperative to generate momentum as well as counter the fears change will inevitably introduce. Similarly, it was recognized that questions of value, and of women's representation in the higher education community, deserved special attention.

The input received at the conference is already resulting in action. The Steering Committee has launched an extensive outreach program to address some of the issues raised by participants such as wider participation. Over the next 20-30 days, a team from the committee will visit the governors and senior policy-makers in the four provinces and the federal government, leadership, faculty and stakeholders of various universities starting from Karachi University, and will actively solicit input on the current processes of the committee, its possible contributions and the key issues. The discussions in Boston visibly strengthened the resolve of the Steering Committee members as well as pointed them in new directions.

While skepticism is likely to be the dominant order-of-the-day until something is demonstrated on the ground, the tone of the discussions and the direction of reform is extremely encouraging. At this point, one only hopes it continues to gain momentum, increases participation from the civic society, and results in real change for Pakistan.