Quality education

This refers to the article ‘The Taiwan model’ (October 12) by Atta-ur-Rahman. The writer wants Pakistan to follow the models set up by China, Taiwan, Korea and Singapore to migrate to a strong knowledge economy. There is no such thing as migrating from a low-level underdeveloped status to a high-tech knowledge economy. No country has developed overnight.

Developed countries have attained their present statuses through decades of purposeful education, training and hard work. If the Indian steel industry is successful today, it is because of the Indian Steel Training and Education Program (INSTEP) under which India sent its graduate engineers to the US for advanced training in modern steel production techniques. Developed countries improved the knowledge and ability of their people by focusing on their education. In our case, 23 million school-going children are out of school. The standards of education in our universities and colleges have declined to such an extent that PhD scholars are now applying for sub-standard jobs.

Abdul Majeed

Islamabad