PM mulls spending money recovered from the corrupt on education

By News Desk

HARIPUR: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday said he is considering diverting all the money recovered by the Asset Recovery Unit from the corrupt towards the education sector and stressed investing in education will ensure a bright and prosperous future for the coming generations.

Addressing the inauguration ceremony of the Pak-Austria Fachhochschule Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology (PAF-IAST) here at Mang, Haripur, the Prime Minister said a “knowledge economy is the best option” for Pakistan to capitalise its large youth pool and immense talent for scientific innovation and technical productivity.

“Now is the time for country to discover its own path leading towards a system based on scientific and technical production to ensure economic growth,” he said.

Established with assistance of the government of Austria, the institute aims to contribute to developing Pakistan’s high-tech industrial economy and higher education in engineering and technology.

It also aims to set up an integrated technology park with business incubation centres and shell units for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Khan said “dependency syndrome” is the main reason behind the country’s distraction from development. “The mindset of depending on the West and not relying on own potential prevails. Why can’t we produce our own scientists and make inventions and patents?” he asked.

The Prime Minister referred to tech giants Microsoft and Facebook, which, due to making strides in science and technology, are worth more than Pakistan’s budget.

He said Singapore boasts $330 billion in exports compared with Pakistan’s $25 billion as it entirely adopted a science and technology approach, while Malaysia made an imprint in electronics as encouraged by leader Dr Mahathir Mohamad. The Prime Minister expressed confidence that the Fachhochschule Institute of Austria’s top university would prove to be a hub of science and technology and also a platform for Pakistan’s youth to excel.

He mentioned that China’s collaboration with Pakistan has transformed into industrial cooperation as the two countries have entered the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project.

The Premier said campuses of five Chinese and three Austrian universities will be opened in Pakistan as the country sets its eyes on learning artificial intelligence and big data for systemic data processing.

The Prime Minister also lauded the cooperation extended by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government in materialising the project, saying that in time the benefits for the country would be realised.