Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif urged all political parties to stand united on strengthening health, education, economy, and defence for the progress and prosperity of the country. He said whichever party comes into power it should focus on these sectors for the country’s development.
The chief minister was speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony of Air University’s Multan campus at here on Wednesday.
He also announced hefty financial assistance for Air University’s Multan campus and hinted at the possibility of the construction of a Metro bus route near the varsity in the future.
“The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has forced us to revisit our education policies. We have previously produced great scholars, eminent educationists, and researchers but now we need engineers, technicians, motor mechanics, and so on,” he said, adding that information technology was the “name of the game” these days.
“Sixty-five percent of our population comprises of the youth ranging from 15-30 years old and it will be a challenge for us to convert them into the skilled manpower that we need, but if we can do so, it will be a win-win situation,” Shehbaz Sharif said.
“We should empower the youth with high quality and job oriented education,” he added.
Speaking about the government’s educational projects, the chief minister said that the Punjab Education Endowment Fund (PEEF) was perhaps a matchless fund in all of South Asia.
The assets of the PEEF total Rs 20 billion, he said, adding that the educational expenditures of countless needy and diligent boys and girls were being paid through the fund.
He said that the PEEF had disbursed scholarships worth Rs 11 billion from 2008 to date, adding that the first IT university of South Punjab was nearing completion in Rahim Yar Khan.
The chief minister stated that over 100,000 laptops would be disbursed among the higher achievers of schools, colleges, and varsities during the current year, adding that over 300,000 laptops had aleardy been distributed.
HEC chairman Dr Mukhtar also addressed the ceremony and stressed the need for producing upstanding citizens besides providing quality education through educational institutions.
He highlighted a number of education projects being carried out by the incumbent government, saying that it showed that the government attached greatly valued education.
Parliamentarians, MPAs, the mayor of Multan, and civil and military officers were also present at the groundbreaking ceremony.
AIR CHIEF MARSHAL PRAISES PUNJAB GOVT FOR PROMOTING EDUCATION: Addressing the groundbreaking ceremony of the sub-campus of Air University at Multan, Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman praised the measures taken by the Punjab government for the promotion of education in the province. He said the Punjab government had provided all out support for the establishment of an institution for special children.
He said that the support of Pakistan government for the field of education was overwhelming, adding that the country had to stand on its own feet and not look towards others for help.
The air chief said that the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) had established a medical college in Islamabad and two more colleges would be built in 2018. The PAF has established many vocational institutes for the lower class to help them obtain respectable jobs in various fields, he said.