COVER STORY
Photo: Sidra Dar
Pakistan is beautiful. Everywhere you go, you will find something to marvel about, something so awe-inspiring that you will end up saying ‘God be praised’. Whether it’s the majestic scenery of KP, the lush lands of the Punjab, the plains of Sindh which is the ancient seat of the Indus Valley Civilisation, or the westernmost province Balochistan famous for its beautiful beaches and mountains.
Unfortunately, however, the lack of proper infrastructure makes life tough for people of small cities and towns. Travelling, too, is difficult. So, if you want to visit Gwadar, a coastal city in Balochistan from Karachi by road, it is advisable to go prepared as you may not find anything to your liking in the dhabas and small restaurants on the way. The best part, however, is travelling on the coastal highway, which in itself is a modern-day wonder. From Karachi, it’s roughly a nine-hour drive to Gwadar and every minute of the drive is guaranteed to keep you spellbound. The rock formation along the route is a sculptor’s dream, which in itself is worth your trip. All along the Coastal Highway, the stark beauty of the mountains – with little to no greenery – will blow your mind away! The Kund Malir Beach is another attraction for the people. Civilisation has not found the beautiful beaches of Balochistan, so they are still clean and wonderful, but this may change in the future because of the development work taking place in the area in connection with the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor or CPEC, as it is commonly known.
Recently, a two-day conference was organised by the University of Gwadar and the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) to review the development projects for the citizens of Gwadar under the aegis of CPEC, jointly initiated by COPHC, Gwadar Port Authority and Gwadar Development Authority, and their resultant impact on the socioeconomic development of Gwadar.
The word “Gwadar” is a combination of two Balochi words – guad meaning wind and dar meaning gateway or door, thus Gwadar means “the door of wind”. Gwadar is situated on the southwestern Arabian Sea coast of Pakistan in Gwadar District of Balochistan.
From the top of Koh-e-Batil (elevation 150 m or 480 ft) you can have the best view of the city and the Coastal Highway. The population of Gwadar is about 138,000, and is predominantly Baloch. In Gwadar, most people’s livelihood depends on fishing and it has a fish-processing factory. There is a severe dearth of water, and electricity continuously plays hide and seek with the populace, so many people have started using solar panels to get electricity during day time.
CPEC and Gwadar
In simple words, CPEC is a collection of infrastructure projects like road networks, railway network, energy projects and economic zones, under construction throughout Pakistan at a considerable cost, which is mostly borne by, of course, our all-weather friends, the Chinese, through grants and subsidised loans. The people of Gwadar and Balochistan are generally poor. Most of them are educationally backward with no exposure to the internet. Generation after generation of fisherfolk have remained deprived of education and prosperity. Will prosperity ever come to them? Will CPEC’s port operations change their fortunes? Only time will tell.
Zhang Baozhong, Chairman China Overseas Ports Holding Company (COPHC) spoke at length about the experiences of his seven-year stay in Gwadar. “When I arrived here seven years ago, in May 2015, I was asked by the people of my first impression about Gwadar. My office was in Beijing, so coming from there to Gwadar I was depressed. There was no greenery, no life, no people, no vehicles. There was only PC Hotel, which was also closed. The concerned Ministry asked PC Hotel to open for a month. The government asked me to develop the place and after seven years Gwadar has now beautiful trees, bungalows, villas, roads and of course, the Gawadar University.
“I am also a teacher, and I believe education is the most important prerequisite for development. The university faculty knows me, but I don’t go there often; I don’t like visiting a university with security protocol. I spoke to some universities in China to initiate student exchange programmes between them and University of Gwadar (UoG). The exchange programme will benefit the students and they will become a part of the development of their city.”
Another worthwhile mention here would be of China-Pakistan Faqeer Primary School Project. Its capacity was for 150 students but at the inauguration, local people came in droves, bringing their children to be enrolled in the school. So, more space was procured and at present 700 children are studying there. The school caters to children from Class I to Class VIII, and plans for a secondary school are already in progress. COPHC donated books to help Faqeer School in setting up its library and also provided school uniforms to all students.
Chairman IPS Khalid Rahman, in his keynote speech, highlighted the importance of the role of the academia. According to him, academia can be instrumental in shaping public opinion and policy making at the national level. He thinks that that the future of the university is bright, and by producing young scholars, the university would help change the economic condition of the people of Gwadar. Earlier, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was also signed between the University of Gwadar and IPS to collaborate in research activities and other areas of mutual interests.
Shahzad Sultan, Country Head Marketing of COPHC, gave some details about the educational projects for students of Gwadar. “20 students are sent to China on scholarships every year. We have been running a primary school here for the last five years and soon we will construct a secondary school as well.”
Jawad Akhtar Khokhar, advisor, maritime affairs, Ministry of Planning, Development & Special Initiatives spoke about China-Pakistan Vocational and Technical Training Institute, which has state-of-the-art equipment and at present has the capacity for 150 students. According to Naseer Khan Kashani, Chairman, Gwadar Port Authority (GPA), 130 girls and boys are currently studying in the institute and are learning skills pertaining to port operations. They are also doing courses in Urdu and Chinese.
Professor Dr Abdul Razzaq Sabir, Vice Chancellor, University of Gwadar, in his welcome address appreciated the initiatives of IPS. “We must train our youth to become productive elements of Gwadar. University of Gwadar was announced in 2016, but became operational in 2021. It has 450 students, and has four faculties at present, but we have plans to introduce another 30 faculties within 10 years. Also, we have plans for hostels for students from far flung areas of Balochistan.”
Dr Rashid Aftab, Director Riphah Institute of Public Policy stressed that the concerns of the local people must be addressed.
The youth of the area
The future of a country depends on its enterprising young people and Gwadar is teeming with youth wanting to get education and vocational skills to uplift their families, region and country. The two-day conference, held in the library of the UoG enabled Us to speak to the very bright and hardworking students of the university. The problems they have to encounter in their bid to get higher education are not insurmountable, if the government does its bit.
Khadija Khan is a first semester student in the Department of Education. She is, overall, happy about her alma mater but also points out the problems students face. “The university is very good, but we have some problems: roads are bad so commuting is very difficult. Electricity is a big problem, as it is not easy to study without fans in hot weather. The environment of the university is very good. Teachers are very cooperative and helpful. For the purdah observing students, too, it is very convenient. The one major problem is that we have only four departments, and we need more faculties. I was a student of pre-medical and I wanted to study something connected to my subjects in Inter like Zoology or Botany, but I had to settle for Education.
“Another thing is that the university is very small; it can be made better like the universities of Karachi or Peshawar, if the government helps.”
Khadija also spoke about her plans: “I want to prepare for CSS examination, and it is also my baba’s wish. I will take the exams and hopefully will become a CSS officer.” Good luck, to this enterprising student of UoG!
Naeema Abdur Rehman and Maria Bashir Ahmed are from Pishukan, a small village at a distance of 40 minutes from Gwadar city, and both are from Education Department. Maria’s parents didn’t allow her to go to Lahore. “I am studying here because my family didn’t allow me to go to Lahore for my studies.” Naeema highlighted the internet issue. “The internet is a big problem. At university, it is available, but the signals are not good in our area. To do our assignment, we have to get up sometimes at 1 am when the net is faster. Boys have it easy because they can go out to places where signal is stronger.”
Another student, Waseem Muhammad, said after graduating from UoG he would like to go for further studies and probably get admission in Iqra University, Karachi. “Future is not certain. We are not always able to do what we want. But UoG needs more departments.”
Abdul Saboor wants to join Pakistan Army after his graduation. “My focus is getting a degree and then commission in Pakistan Army.” Mubeen Ahmed from IT department said that experienced teachers are needed alongwith better equipment. Another student of IT Department, who wished to remain anonymous, said, “It is very hot, despite fans. We need air-conditioned classrooms. Who can study when perspiration can make you dehydrated?” he asked reasonably. We concur; we were in the classroom for less than five minutes and were sopping wet. The humidity in Gwadar is way more than we have in Karachi.
“When I am in university, my parents worry about my safety,” says another student who wishes to remain anonymous. “You know how the situation is in Balochistan.”
Muhammad Naeem of IT department said, “We have problems studying programming; we don’t have enough facilities, and need PhD teachers. We also need practical education and internships.”
Marium Shahid is a student of BBA in her seventh semester. She also had to give up her dream of becoming a doctor as there is no medical school here. “I wanted to do medicine, but had to opt for BBA because there is no medical college here and it is not easy for girls here to go to a different city to study what they want.
‘There is a feeling of deprivation in students of my area. We did not have a university for such a long time! We had to take out processions to register our demands. When we protest, it’s taken in the wrong sense. It is the incompetence of the government that we are deprived of basic facilities like health and proper education. We have a shortage of teachers as there is no proper accommodation facilities for teachers from other cities and no good schools for their children. Our teachers work very hard with us and support us.
“I want to do M. Phil or MS, but there is no provision for that here. There is a branch of Allama Iqbal Open University but I want to do it in a proper way.”
Haroon Ashraf, a student of Management Sciences, also complained about lack of experience staff. “I think only 60 percent of our teachers are experienced. 40 percent teachers are those who started their career immediately after completing their studies.”
Gul Sameen, a lecturer of IT, is happy teaching here. “My experience so far is pretty good. Our city is underdeveloped, but our students are very hard working. I studies from IBA, and there is a lot of difference between the facilities, but I am sure within a few years we will have all modern facilities for our students. The management is very cooperative and understands the challenges we face. But the best thing is that all our students give their 100 percent and have a great potential to progress. Once the port operations are in full swing, our university will also benefit from it. And, you may have heard that university is the first step for the development in any city, so we are on our way.”
Balochistan students have it tough, but they are full of verve and are very optimistic. All they need is opportunity to realise their potential. In the conference, Khalid Rahman, Chairman IPS said that optimism is the key to success, and Baloch students have it in abundance.
Anita Jalil Baloch, the first female theatre artist and Vlogger is optimistic. “Gwadar has changed a lot since CPEC projects started. We now have an intermediate college and vocational institutions. And, of course, a university! The future looks bright.”
