Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms Prof Dr Ahsan Iqbal said that Pakistan’s economic prosperity was linked with the durable peace of Karachi, the economic nerve of the country.
He said: “China Pakistan corridor is a fate changer for Pakistan. The government is focusing on the export goal of $150 billion by 2025. Economic stability and prosperity was possible through knowledge-based research-oriented society. Pakistan plans to setup US-Pakistan Knowledge Corridor that can help the country learn from the US experiences and achievements in the fields of education, science and technology.”
He was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of Center for Bioequivalence Studies and Clinical Research (CBSCR) held at InternationalCenter for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS), University of Karachi (UoK) here on Saturday.
Vice Chancellor UoK Prof Dr Muhammad Qaiser, former chairman Higher Education Commission Prof Dr Atta-ur-Rahman, Director ICCBS Prof Dr Muhammad Iqbal Choudhary, Chairman HEJ Foundation Aziz Latif Jamal and Chairperson Dr Punjwani Memorial Trust Nadira Panjwani, Chairman Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA) Saeed Allawala and Dr Sonia Siddiqui also spoke on the occasion.
Earlier, the federal minister, along with Dr Muhammad Qaiser, Prof Atta-ur-Rahman, Dr Iqbal Choudhary, Aziz Latif Jamal Ms Nadira Panjwani and other dignitaries inaugurated the newly setup building of CBSCR.
Delivering inaugural lecturer, Prof Ahsan Iqbal said the government had increased the higher education budget from 43 billion rupees to 78 billion rupees that showed its priorities. He said that higher education would be available at the doorstep of every Pakistani; the government needed 10,000 PHDs who will play key role to turn vision-2025 into a victorious venture, he added.
He said the federal government set up National Curriculum Council (NCC) to reform education sector. The NCC will introduce standard examination system in all over the country in the aftermath of devolving this subject to provinces under 18th constitutional amendment, he added. He said the prime aim of the NCC was to inculcate critical thinking among students.
He urged the youth to change their ways of thinking, and asked to develop positive thinking. He highlighted the importance of self-believe in the life of an individual, and said that this got anyone on the way of progress.
He appreciated the efforts made by the leadership of ICCBS to make this research establishment as the world class institution. He promised audience that his government won’t stop supporting university and ICCBS. Dr Muhammad Qaiser said the university played pivotal role in term of promoting higher education, while the great research and academic activities at ICCBS were also a good example in this regard.
Prof Atta-ur-Rahman appreciated the government step to increase the higher education budget from Rs 43billion to Rs 78billion, and advised the minister that if the government took some more positive steps like this, the higher education sector could be more successful.
“The Muslim world needs to perform remarkable in higher education and science and technology. The CambridgeUniversity has produced around 90 noble laureates so far but in the Muslim world the situation is very miserable,” he said.
Dr Iqbal Choudhary said that CBSCR, University of Karachi, offered for the first time in Pakistan a unique facility of ‘certified reference laboratory’ that would conduct bioequivalence evaluation and development of generic pharmaceutical products in full compliance with the regulatory authorities in Europe, USA and Japan.
He said: “The center is having, as one of its major function, complete testing facilities that include clinical monitoring of patents, blood sample analysis, statistical analysis, and evaluation of equivalence of products. It is initially being funded by the government of Pakistan and ultimately it would become a profit-earning organisation promotion research and academic activities in the country.”
