Rs3.4b NIETE project to build human capital

Planning minister says teacher quality key to URAAN's economic transformation

ISLAMABAD:

Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal said on Friday that education remained the backbone of a nation's development and prosperity, and that Pakistan's path to progress fundamentally depends on quality education and the preparation of highly capable teachers.

Every nation must equip its young generation with quality knowledge while developing their productive capacity, creativity and problem-solving skills, he said.

The minister expressed these views during his visit to the National Institute of Excellence in Teacher Education (NIETE), where he was briefed on the institute's various programmes, teacher training activities and progress under the project.

Iqbal said during 2013-2018, four major projects were assigned to the Ministry of Education aimed at reforms in curriculum, the examination system and teacher training. He said he was pleased to see the National Institute of Excellence in Teacher Education (NIETE) taking shape as a functional and growing institution, adding that it was a seed planted by the Ministry of Planning now growing into a strong institution.

The curriculum could only become effective and relevant when teachers were equipped with modern knowledge and updated teaching methodologies, he said.

"Teaching is not merely a job; it is a mission and an instrument of nation-building," he said.

The minister said Pakistan must move beyond rote and copy-paste learning and promote creativity and critical thinking among students. The objective should not merely be to produce a generation that reads books, but one that writes research and generates new ideas.

Alongside modern science and technology education, the younger generation must also be familiarised with Pakistan's national identity, heritage and culture, he said.

"We have to prepare future generations to become confident ambassadors of Pakistan," he said.

Iqbal said URAAN Pakistan aimed not merely to expand education but to build human capital capable of driving a productive, competitive and knowledge-based economy. He stressed that strong foundations in literacy, numeracy and problem-solving must be laid in schools, making teacher quality fundamental to Pakistan's economic development.

The minister said the core idea behind establishing NIETE was that the quality of education could not be improved without improving the quality of teachers. A high-quality teacher education institution could not remain confined to its building; its real laboratory had to be the school and the classroom.

He said research should move from the classroom to evidence, from evidence to policy, and back to improved teaching practices. He stressed that artificial intelligence and modern technology should support teachers while complementing, not replacing, effective teaching.

Iqbal said he wanted to develop a state-of-the-art teacher training institution of the highest international standards, which could become the best such institution in South Asia and serve as a model for Pakistan and the wider world.

The current CDWP-level NIETE project is an extension of the original project launched by the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training in 2023 under Iqbal's guidance to promote excellence in teacher quality in Pakistan.

The revised project, estimated at Rs3.4 billion, expands the scope of the initiative in line with the education emergency declared by the prime minister and is aligned with URAAN Pakistan's Five Es National Economic Transformation Plan and Sustainable Development Goal 4. The initiative follows a National Consultative Meeting held in July 2022 on revamping teacher education in Pakistan, which focused on modernising teacher education in line with international standards and integrating technology into training, assessment and quality management.