‘UK’s health sector can’t function without Pak doctors, nurses’

Karachi
The British health sector cannot function without Pakistani doctors and nurses, and Pakistani engineers, professors, technicians and scientists are serving globally in every walk of life.
Former federal minister for information Javed Jabbar made this observation while speaking as the guest speaker at a lectures’ series organised by the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Karachi, on the challenge of human development in Pakistan. The programme was held at the Arts Auditorium.
Jabbar said Pakistan emerged as a nation overnight and survived miraculously despite facing several challenges since its inception as a new state. He termed General Ayub Khan’s inclusion in the federal cabinet as a first step towards military interventions in Pakistan.
He suggested immediate reforms and revolution in every sector of life. “Pakistan is ranked 148th in the Human Development Index out of 184 countries, which is very unfortunate.” He emphasised the need for immediately holding a national demographic census, pointing out that the previous census took place in 1998.
According to the former minister, reforms in the educational sector were inevitable for sustainable growth. He also emphasised the need for holding local government elections so that change for the better could come from the grassroots level.
Jabbar maintained that Pakistan was highly rich in natural resources and it was estimated that its unofficial GDP was around $1 trillion, but what was required was to manage resources properly with desirable results.
Dean Faculty of Social Sciences Prof Dr Moonis Ahmar said that in order to meet the challenge of human development in Pakistan it was imperative to fully utilise human resource by investing in good quality education, ensure sustainable development, empower the weaker sections of society, establish the rule of law and eradicate corruption.
“The human development in Pakistan must also include that people should have access to the basic necessities of life, particularly clean and safe drinking water, quality education and basic security,” he said. In the end, Dr Ahmar presented a shield to the guest speaker.