Our correspondent
Islamabad
The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Sardar Masood Khan has said transforming the education sector according to the job market’s needs and requirements is the top priority of the government.
“The AJK government is determined to ensure innovative and quality education to improve the quality of education in its institutions to bring an educational revolution in Azad Kashmir,” he added.
He was talking to the founder and president of the UAE-based Ed-Tech Company, Coded Minds, Mr. Omar Farooqui and its Chief Operating Officer Ms. Amna Khaishgi, who called on him here at the Jammu and Kashmir House on Wednesday.
The AJK President said that five public sector universities were imparting modern education to students in the liberated territory, and focus has been laid on tailoring the academic syllabi as per demands of the ever evolving job market, so that after graduating, the students do not face any difficulty in finding relevant jobs. For this purpose, he said, “our universities pay special attention towards establishing liaisons with the industry, corporate sector and financial corporations all over the country.”
Sardar Masood Khan said that around 1.5 million tourists have been visiting Azad Kashmir every year. The region with natural beauty, pleasant weather, majestic mountains and rivers which have virtual turned the territory into a ‘paradise on the earth’ for the tourists, he added.
However, still there is a huge potential for enhancing religious and archeological tourism owing to the numerous unique and ancient historic forts, mosques and temples that exist in different parts of the State. These sites can certainly attract a very large number of tourists from home and abroad, he said.
Sardar Masood Khan said that the State government has been fully focusing on the uplift of basic infrastructure to promote tourism. Besides this, he added, there are wide prospects of energy generation because of abundant water resources, and the government has devised a comprehensive strategy in this regard.
The AJK President said that under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a Special Economic Zone will be established in Mirpur. Apart from these initiatives, he said that all necessary steps are being taken to provide universal access to health facilities for the residents of the State, as per the international standards.
“Steps are under consideration to introduce tele-health facilities in order to provide modern health services to the people of remote areas,” he added.
On this occasion, Mr. Omar Farooqui said that being a son of the soil, it is his dream to turn the liberated territory into a paradise in terms of education, and to enable the young generation to join the race of modern technology.
He said that it was his endeavor to encourage public-private partnerships besides attracting local and foreign investors to work under a comprehensive plan to improve the standard of education, provide employment to the local people, and reduce the number of dropouts at all levels of education.
In her remarks on the occasion, Ms. Amna Khaishgi said that their company intends to establish a modern Teachers Training Institute with state of the art educational technology, in March this year, and a full-fledged technicalogy college and university in December, this year.
The AJK President while appreciating the spirit of the Ed-Tech Company, assured every kind of cooperation in this regard.
