Stance of Pakistani government against PhD scholarships

The Government Slashes Foreign PhD Scholarships

In an unfortunate development, the government has substantially cut the budget for the Higher Education Commission. As a result, many students who were selected for HEC scholarships for their foreign PhDs are no longer getting funded. About two decades earlier, another PPP government had stopped the PHD scholarships started by Mehboob-ul-Haq. If this had not been done, by now, Pakistan could have had developed a reasonable pool of academics by continuing with the scheme over the last two decades.

Funding students for foreign PHD programs is not just about creating a luxury for a few people as is often said. It is about developing a critical mass of qualified academics necessary for turning around our university system so that better educational opportunities are also available in Pakistan. This is also crucial for creating a better intellectual environment where we Pakistanis can develop home grown solutions to our problems instead of relying on biased analysis by foreigners.

The cut in the higher education budget, along with the appointment of Vani supporter Bijarani as the education minister, shows how much this government really cares about education. The PPP does not tire of saying that our excessive defense budget prevents the government from doing enough on education, but clearly this is not the only problem. If the previous government was able to provide a hefty budget for higher education despite being a military regime with its penchant for excessive military spending, there is no reason why this ‘awami’ government can not continue with the foreign PHD scholarships.

Perhaps even more disappointing is the widespread indifference of a large number of analysts in the media to this issue. Especially those who regularly lament the state’s misplaced priorities and lack of interest in improving our social indicators but are now completely silent.

The role of political parties other than the PPP is also disappointing. The PML-N, PML-Q, ANP, MQM, JUI and JI are all silent. The only honorable exception is the PTI which has strongly condemned the govt’s cut in the PHD scholarships.

We request people to write to various politicians, TV talk show hosts and newspapers so that this regressive step by the government can immediately be reversed.

Other news-pieces on similar topics:

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=150727

http://thenews.com.pk/print1.asp?id=150996

http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Karachi/22-Nov-2008/Funds-dearth-HEC-to-end-MPhil-PhD-programme

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=139409


Source: http://pkpolitics.com/2009/01/05/the-government-slashes-foreign-phd-scholarships/