Past performance

This refers to the article ‘Fix the HEC’ (April 8) by Dr Javaid Laghari. The writer has criticised the recent performance of the HEC under the now-former chairperson Dr Tariq Banuri. It is strange that criticism about the HEC’s performance has mainly come from two previous chairpersons and not from stakeholders or students who were affected by the recent changes in the HEC’s policies. Criticising other people without any supporting evidence is meaningless. In the Global Knowledge Index 2020 that measures the knowledge performance of 138 countries, Pakistan ranked 111th. Right above Pakistan was Nepal (110th). Bhutan (94th), Sri Lanka (87th), Iran (80th) and India (75th) scored better than our country. Switzerland topped the rankings and the US and Finland enjoyed second and third positions.

Whatever good the HEC has done to the higher education over the past 20 years is not visible in this ranking. At a time when the economy is struggling to grow and the country is receiving funds from the IMF and the World Bank, and vaccine doses in donations, it makes no sense to send a large number of students to mostly mediocre foreign universities on expensive, government-funded PhD scholarships. It is better to set our priorities right and spend the already scarce resources wisely.

Abdul Latif

Canberra, Australia