CDWP approves Karachi, Peshawar mass transit programs

on 23/05/2017

The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) has cleared for the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) two major mass transit programs one for Karachi and the other for Peshawar. The moot approved a total of16 development projects costing Rs130 billion. The two projects (in Karachi and Peshawar) which are part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) are expected to be formally approved on the sidelines of upcoming One Belt, One Road conference in China this month. Minister for Planning, Development and Reform Ahsan Iqbal presided over the CWDP meeting in Islamabad. The other projects are related to energy, transport and communication, water resources and manpower. Also, the moot approved concept clearance papers of two projects such as Hyderabad-Sukkur Motorway (M6) worth Rs238bn and Sindh Renewable Energy Development Project (SREDP) $122 million. Four major projects of transport and communication sectors costing Rs.102 billion were recommended keeping in view the approval limits of the CDWP.The meeting which gave its nod on revival of Karachi Circular Railway (Rs27.6bn) asked the provincial government for rationalization of the cost. Also it would be ensured that the stations and other buildings to be constructed under the project matched the historical architecture of Karachi. Under the project, 43.2km double railway track would be constructed besides 24 stations. The meeting also approved Rs56.8bn for Peshawar Sustainable Bus Rapid Transit Corridor Project of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government. The project, planned to be constructed with Rs48bn loan from the ADB, envisaged construction of 25.8km-long road track, 32 stations with commercial buildings and other allied facilities. The project, planned to be executed in 12 months, is expected to facilitate 472,000 people per day in its initial phase. The meeting also approved Karachi Neighborhood Improvement Project (KNIP) worth Rs10.5bn, a four-lane bridge across River Indus connecting Kallur Kot Bhakkar with Dhakki area of Dera Ismail Khan costing Rs7bn, a 30-megwatt Hydro Power Project in Ghowari in Gilgit Baltistan costing Rs7.9bn besides six water related projects worth Rs6.6bn which include three small dams.

Why technical training institutes have failed to provide skilled professionals?

on 22/05/2017

Obviously lack of Quality Education and increasing gap between Technical Institutes and Industries are the main reasons.  Infinity School of Engineering (ISE) is the first and only Technical Training Institute that is owned by a group of industries, which is Ravi-Infinity Group. ISE is committed to abridge the existing gap between Technical Training Institutes and Industries by providing on job trainings to individual learner in Ravi-Infinity Group as well as in consortium industries. ISE is   providing not only Knowledge in classrooms, but also the Technical Skills in modern equipped labs and professional attitude to individual learner through life skill sessions. ISE is striving to convert the Technical Education Systems according to the international quality education standards to cope with the international requirements. With the passion of improving the quality of vocational education, ISE started working on ISO 29990 which provides high level of quality and internationally recognized standards in vocational or non-formal education. For the development of ISO 29990, ISE joined hands with PUM, which is a Netherlands based organization of world’s senior  experts. Mr. Paul Schouten from PUM visited ISE for developing the Standard 

Operating Procedures (SOP’s) according to the norms of ISO 29990 in December 2016 for three weeks. After that the management of ISE worked for four months to develop a solid management structure under the guidelines of ISO 29990.Mr. Paul Schouten visited ISE again in April 2017 for two weeks and Quality Enhancement Cell of ISE presented its management system to him, for getting confidence before implementation. In near future, ISE will be ISO 29990 certified after its implementation and will become pioneer for ISO 29990 in Pakistan. www.infinity.edu.pk

0301-5644724, 0334-4228634, 042-37970011,

www. facebook.com/infinityschoolofengineering

Address:18-Km, Sheikhupura Road, Lahore.

Improving Engineering Education

on 20/05/2017

By Khalid Pervez

There could be no denying the fact that engineering graduates have a strategic and long-term impact on quality and productivity growth in industry and service sectors. To produce high quality industrial products and render international-level services that are price competitive both within and outside the country, we need a high number of well trained and well qualified engineering graduates. The pressing needs that are opening because CPEC and would have a long-term impact, further enhance concerns on quality engineering education.

Some of the issues which surround our engineering education system are:

Outdated curriculum which is not in line with industry requirements and absence of academic framework to constantly respond to the changing needs;

Employers are not happy with engineering graduates and there’s no serious engagement between education providers and employers;

Focus of most of the institutions is undergraduate teaching and the post-graduate programs and research is weak; 

 

Lack of system capacity building effort and its enterprising and innovation character;

Accreditation is more of a compliance rather than an improvement tool;

95 to 100 percent revenue from government disbursement and/or student fees;

 No participation in regional development.

It’s generally agreed that betterment of the overall engineering education system requires that all the stakeholders must effectively play their due role. The recognized stakeholders are: Students, Faculty/Educators, Alumnai, Administrators, Innovators, Entrepreneurs, Industry Professionals & Leaders. However, the key obstacle is the lack of ability to develop sustainable framework of long term development together with its implementation.

Briefly speaking, the steps that can transform an engineering education system are:

  1.  Strengthen governance and leadership, which apart from other things also includes increasing the number of autonomous institutions and strengthened role of regulatory bodies to carefully grant accreditation and monitor performance of existing and new institutions. With respect to governance it’s important to make the governing body stronger. It indeed requires inclusion of qualified and competent outside professionals. This concept would meet with much resistance both from public and private sector institutions. But that’s where the independent regulatory body would have to use its muscles
  2. Improve the quality of teaching, learning and research such that there’s greater focus on outcome based education. This requires that the faculty is well qualified and competent, the atmosphere is conducive to effective teaching, learning and research and there’s continuous curriculum development to cater to the changing needs of industry and end-users.
  3. There’s a need of devising a well thought through criteria for rating all universities and institutions. This must be the task of independent regulatory body. The secured ratings should be applied both for encouragement and reprimands.
  4.  Develop stronger industry-institution collaborations. There have been many efforts in the past – some with good outcome – but these couldn’t be sustained due to lack of a clear end goal and implementation hiccups. This must be made mandatory, started and continued on permanent basis and should include internships, engagement of faculty on suitable assignments, etc.
  5. Encourage innovation and entrepreneurship. This could be implemented in several ways, depending on the strengths of a university or institution, its location, etc. At the beginning, it could just provide incentives to students and faculty for feasible ideas and later it could develop into facilities that are common to institutions and industry. Such facilities may consist of special laboratories and workshop for specific purposes where university-industry joint projects could be handled, in turn, creating stronger industry-academia linkage. Success of such linkages could greatly contribute in innovation, entrepreneurship, talent fostering and building up education system which is receptive to market needs.
  6.  Implement a national concerted initiative to improve engineering education. A national concerted initiative must be launched by the government with input, participation and commitment from all the stakeholders on improving the quality and relevance of engineering education. The national agenda must at least address the four key dimensions: strengthening governance and leadership; improving the quality of teaching and learning; fostering stronger industry/institute collaboration; and building innovation and entrepreneurship at the engineering institutions.

    The concerted effort should systematically monitor, refine, and evaluate the progress made at all the universities and institutions which must be tied up with institution ranking and accreditation.

    Notwithstanding a discussion on polytechnic institutes which run Associate Engineer [diploma] or BTech programs, it could be stated that they too are in dire need of holistic approach to enhance their effectiveness in imparting quality education.

    In conclusion, it could be emphasized that our engineering education system needs major uplift under a long-term plan consisting of concerted efforts of all stakeholders and due diligence of a national level autonomous regulatory body. Considering its magnitude and nature, such a plan might appear to be just a fallacy. But there can’t be shortcuts to such an important subject as the engineering education.

    [The author is Chief Executive of KPA Consulting, Karachi – khalid@kpa.com.pk]

Provinces’ share cut from DP

on 20/05/2017

Islamabad would slash revenue shares of provincial governments under National Finance Commission (NFC) Award as the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has failed to achieve its tax collection target. The FBR is struggling to achieve its tax collection target of Rs3631 billion during 2016-17. It has collected Rs2520 billion during ten months (July-April) of the current fiscal year. Now an unofficial revised target is set Rs3500 billion for the year 2016-17. Federal government has communicated the provinces to adjust their budgets according to the new tax collection target. An amount of Rs2.135 trillion was to be transferred to the provinces in 2016-17. Punjab was to get Rs1045.01 billion Sindh Rs547.84 billion, KP Rs346.18 billion and Balochistan Rs196.84 billion. With the new target, the provinces are likely to get Rs70 billion less their receipts. Under the 7th NFC Award, the federal government has to transfer 57.5 percent resources to the provinces from federal divisible pool. Under the current award, Punjab gets 51.74pc share, Sindh 24.55pc, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 14.62 percent and Balochistan 9.09pc under the divisible pool.

Is CPEC also a game changer for Balochistan?

on 20/05/2017

By ABID MUSTIKHAN

A beautiful view from the Gwadar PC showing the arch of the East Bay of Gwadar to catch a photographer’s eye displays the contrast between the New Gwadar Port and the adjoining shanty town that has been there for centuries.

With my mother tongue as Balochi, I had an advantage to visit the fish harbour and speak to the fisher-folk to hear their views regarding the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), perhaps a game changer for the country.

The fishermen did not express much hope, but rather their concern was their rehabilitation at a new location after being uprooted from their present locality as the new location may lack the necessary infrastructure to maintain their livelihood from the fishing business that they only know.

A seminar organised by the Gwadar Chamber of Commerce was quite conspicuous with the presence of the minister for port and shipping and the federal planning minister. The port and shipping minister, a senator from Balochistan, surrendered the rostrum to the planning minister who spoke on the occasion.

Since the obsession of roads and motorways persists with the president of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, its party members and ministers profusely advocate the contention to toe the line of their leader. Most of the emphasis was on roads and motorways, but nothing was said about a plan or a road map of how to improve the livelihood of the population of Gwadar, or if there was any such plan in the offing.

Nonetheless, there was no mention of how Balochistan and its people would benefit from the fruits of CPEC. It was told that 35% of the funds would be earmarked for the power sector. Great, but most of the grids in Balochistan are already overloaded and even when the power is available (wishful thinking), there is no infrastructure to transmit it, how then will Balochistan benefit?

The Board of Investment of Balochistan has remained dormant since a controversial              appointment.

Lack of emphasis.
The seminar was an opportunity for the Gwadar Chamber to place before the federal minister justified demands not only for Gwadar, but also for Balochistan as a whole.
But the speeches ended with all praise and no emphasis on the important aspects that could bring a turnaround to the most dilapidated, largest and most backward province of the country.
Either out of selfishness, ignorance or incapacity or all three of these, the government of Balochistan and those at the helm of affairs lost this last opportunity from CPEC to bring in investment in the province to become a source of livelihood for its people.
Of the $46 billion funded by the Chinese government, only $7 billion is being invested in Balochistan in the following manner according to the information from the Planning Commission’s CPEC website.

  •  New Gwadar International Airport, which benefits mainly CPEC and partly Balochistan
  •  Gwadar-Turbat-Hoshab section of Gwadar-Rathodero Road (892 km), which is the need of CPEC
  •  Widening and improvement of N-85 Hoshab-Nag-Basima, Surab Road (459 km), which is the need of CPEC
  •  Water treatment, supply and distribution, which is the need of CPEC and partly locals
  •  Establishment of CPEC Support Unit for projects and activities in Gwadar Port Authority, which benefits CPEC
  •  Feasibility study for the construction of break waters, which is the need of CPEC and Gwadar Port
  •  Infrastructure development for EPZA and GIEDA, which benefits Gwadar Port
  •  Pak-China Technical and Vocational Institute at Gwadar, which benefits Balochistan
  •  Up-gradation of existing 50-bed hospital to 300 beds in Gwadar, which benefits Balochistan and locals
  •  Connecting Gwadar with Karachi by rail, which benefits only CPEC
  •  300MW coal-fired power plant at Gwadar, which gives no benefit to Balochistan that lacks infrastructure Following investment opportunities and development prospects are available in Balochistan, but these are being neglected or avoided.
  •  Mineral mapping of the province needs to be undertaken.
  •  There are seven wind corridors in Balochistan, which are at least 60% better than those of Gharo in Sindh, but none are being developed as wind farms. (Source: NASA Wind Map)
  •  Potential for solar energy throughout the northern belt of Balochistan from Taftan to Zhob. (Source: NASA Solar Map)
  •  Potential for geo-thermal energy near Naukundi. (Self-discovery)
  •  Potential for development of coastal fish wealth and support to the local fishermen within 750 km of the coastline to produce quality catch and quality fish for export.
  •  Potential for development of date farms and processing of date as syrup, etc in Makran.
  •  Potential for fruit canning and dehydrated agriculture products for the local and international markets.
  •  Mineral mining and value added upgrading of minerals for export.
  •  Roads from mines and agriculture farmlands linked with the main highways.
  •  Upgrading of existing grid stations in Balochistan. * Development and control of wildlife. * Subsidies and technical support to farmers for agriculture and livestock.
  •  And many more.Bestial bragging of the federal and provincial governments should stop forthwith. The provincial government of Balochistan should seek the help of experts from various universities of the province, who are restricted within the boundaries of their universities to hold seminars, etc, but their proposals and recommendations are dumped.
    It is surprising to note that the Chinese are more concerned than the federal or provincial governments.
    It is, therefore, an obligation of the federal government to revisit its plans and recommendations and for the Balochistan government to avail itself of this one-time opportunity from CPEC.
    Progress in Balochistan will only be seen if a major portion of CPEC funding was invested in the above projects to bring the province if not at par, but close to other provinces of the country in terms of development.
    (The writer is the former project director of Saindak Copper and Gold Project, Chagai, Balochistan)