ISLAMABAD ( BMZ REPORT )
The 4th Deans & Directors Conference entitled ‘Business Education and its Context: Points of Convergence & Divergence’ has begun under the auspices of Higher Education Commission (HEC) and National Business Education Accreditation Council (NBEAC) at a local hotel here on Tuesday.
Mr. Ahsan Iqbal, Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reform was the chief guest at inaugural ceremony of the two-day conference, while Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed, Chairman HEC, Dr. Hasan Shoaib Murad, Chairman NBEAC, and Dr. Sadia Nadeem, Conference Chair were also present. The conference was attended by a large number of faculty members, business schools representatives, and people from industry.
The NBEAC Deans and Directors Conference is held annually to evaluate business education in Pakistan, identity unique themes and specializations for business education in Pakistan, discuss balance between indigenous and international curriculum content for effective business education, and share experiences of education leaders from Pakistan and other countries.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Ahsan Iqbal said that business education has witnessed a remarkable transformation as it is linked to almost every sphere of life. He said promotion of education is imperative for development of a country. “Education improves social, mental and intellectual skills of a person making him productive for society,” he maintained. He added that however education and development need to be aligned for investment in education without visible development is useless. He stressed the need for aligning investment in education with production and development for the country’s prosperity in a real sense.
He recalled that political instability, extremist and energy crisis severely harmed the country before 2013, however the incumbent Government has now overcome the challenges. He revealed that the role of business schools in economic uplift of a country is very critical as they provide human resource and help construct modern economy. Globalization has changed the world in many ways in the age of dynamism, regionalism, and branding, he observed. He said technology is now redefining the business landscape, adding that technological innovation is a vital element for business education.
Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed urged the conference participants to come up with solutions to the challenges facing business education in the country. He said business schools need to have a strong research base and empirical data. Problem-solving impact of research should be concentrated while conducting research, he underlined. He highlighted the role of business schools in the socio-economic development of a country and urged faculty members to pay due attention to training of students alongside education.
Dr. Hasan Sohaib Murad (Chairman, NBEAC) congratulated NBEAC on their 10th Anniversary. We have a total of 129 business schools out of which 70 are public sector and 59 are private sector. Pakistani business schools are benefiting from the accreditation process of NBEAC and we strongly believe that there will be an improvement in the quality of Business Schools. Earlier, Senator Mushahid Hussain talked about the benefits of CPEC (China Pakistan Economic Corridor).
Dr. Sadia Nadeem hoped that the conference will bring about action-oriented planning to define the future of business schools in Pakistan. She also described the topics of various sessions of the 4thDeans & Directors Conference.
Apart from HEC, the conference was sponsored by COMSATS, Islamabad, Greenwich University, Karachi, Alhamd Islamic University, Sukkur IBA, Preston University, IM Science, Peshawar, Virtual University, and Indus University, while Mustakbil.com, Emerald Group Publishing, Iqra University, Vibrant Communication (PVT) Ltd., Training Events Consultancy, and Jang Media Group partnered in the conference.