Chairman of Higher Education Commission (HEC) Dr Mukhtar Ahmed stated that the commission is helping universities adopt hybrid, blended and smart classrooms in view of contemporary requirements.

Addressing the closing ceremony of the 7th International Applied Business Research Conference, he said that the world is focused on digital transformation, innovation and the use of technology in the education sector. “We have to move at the pace of contemporary changes in technology for success in the future,” he added.

Dr Mukhtar Ahmed opined that instead of buildings and models, it is the era of smart-university ideology. He said that smart-university education benefited the global education system during the Covid-19 pandemic.

He said that universities should use cloud computing under the guidance of the HEC. Technology has to be utilized keeping in mind the changes that will take place in the next decades, he added.

Dr Mukhtar said that the work is going on to utilize a blended learning and hybrid system, so that Pakistan is not left behind in the world. He hailed the International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) for organizing the conference on the most contemporary and important topic and pledged full cooperation.

Speaking on the occasion, IIUI President Dr Hathal Homoud Alotaibi said that the world is developing at a fast pace driven by technologies including 3D printing, robotics and artificial intelligence after the Internet.  In human history, he said, older things have been replaced by innovations and technology, and the value of digital transformation has been realized.

Dr Hathal said the university is preparing an open and distance learning system, a campus management system, a new strategic plan, and a new organogram.

The vice presidents of the university Dr Ahmed Shuja Syed and Dr Ayaz Afsar also expressed their views at the conference.

At the conference, more than 650 policymakers, industrial experts and research scholars from the USA, Malaysia and Turkiye shared their thoughts and experiences on the themes of finance, technology management, entrepreneurship, management and marketing.  

Conference participants agreed that initiatives to increase export, enhance data-driven governance and accelerate digital transformation are the key to a bright future for the country.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk