KARACHI:
As many as 100,000 engineers are currently jobless in Pakistan. This has compelled many engineering graduates to seek employment abroad. Others are either forced to switch their career choices or settle for low-paying positions.
Many students who wanted to pursue engineering are now reconsidering their options to avoid being unemployed in the future. Employment opportunities for engineers remain low because of a lack of innovation and research in the field. We have stuck to our traditional methods and failed to expand and adopt more dynamic approaches. Consequently, young engineers have few opportunities to experiment and explore their skills and knowledge.
Perhaps, the government, higher education commission, and other stakeholders need to work together to bolster research in the field to create more opportunities. Universities should collaborate with organisations to bridge the industry-academia gap and equip students with relevant skills. Facilitating engineers and creating opportunities for them cannot only resolve their unemployment issue but also help the country reform its critical infrastructure and reduce reliance on external support.
Warisha Safeer
Karachi
Published in The Express Tribune, June 9th, 2023.
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