PEC, ABAD signs pact for internship program, academia-industry liasion

In a much-needed move, Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) has signed an agreement with the Association of Builders & Developers of Pakistan (ABAD) under which a sizeable number of fresh engineering graduates will be inducted into the construction industry as internees and will be given stipends jointly contributed by both sides.
The PEC has already allocated Rs200 million for the paid internship program—a flagship program of the council to facilitate young engineers for employment and acquire a set of skills.
PEC-ABAD collaboration, if executed in real terms is likely to benefit thousands of fresh graduates who in return will be able to pay back to the industry as experienced engineers.
The internship program is not only the facet of the council’s move with the construction industry. The council as well as ABAD also want engineers to establish a liaison with the construction industry for introducing modern trends that could also mitigate the ill impacts of climate change.
The program is spread over 6 months coupled with designing a mechanism for allowing final year engineering students to visit project sites so that the gap between theory and practice could be minimized.
Another welcome side of this initiative is that the PEC desires to get the Council of Architects and Town Planners on board too. If it happens then a triangle that is required in this country—academia, students, and industry—will be complete.
This agreement was signed in a ceremony in ABAD headquarters in Karachi where PEC Chairman Engr. Najeeb Haroon and ABAD Chairman Mohsin Shekhani led their respective teams. PEC Vice Chairman Sindh Engr. Mukhtiar Shaikh also graced the ceremony.
This moot was not confined to PEC and ABAD. The Council of Architects and Town Planners led by Arif Changezi and Akhuwat led by Amjad Saqib were very much there.
The council and Akhuwat—a known organization that funds small businesses across Pakistan—will also look into the possibility of how young engineers can be facilitated for launching their businesses.