Authentic research crucial to policy making

Education minister addresses need for genuine,accurate data to effectively plan development of public, private sector.

LAHORE: Punjab Education Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman has stressed the need for genuine, reliable and accurate data to be able to effectively plan the development and progress of the public as well as the private sector.

The minister was addressing the inaugural session of a three-day international conference on statistical sciences at the Faisal Auditorium of the Punjab University (PU), Lahore, on Thursday.

Rehman talked about the purposes and benefits of research. “Research can be used to bring about desirable changes in the society,” he said.

He said that the world markets had globalised and there was a dire need to come up with new operational strategies.

Rehman commended the efforts by the PU College of Statistical Sciences.

He promised the vice chancellor he would request the chief minister to sanction a special grant for the construction of a new building for the department.

PU vice chancellor Prof Mujahid Kamran said that the education system of Pakistan could take an honourable place in the world, if its governments allocated at least four per cent of the GDP for education and the promotion of literacy.

He said that the total number of PhDs in all of the Pakistani universities was less than 4,000 in comparison to Manchester University in England, which alone had over 5,000 PhDs.

He said that the education sector was awaiting the support and attention it deserved from the government since the creation of Pakistan. “Unfortunately, it has not yet received it,” he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 26^th, 2010.