ISLAMABAD, March 28: Sustainable development of the country could be ensured only by investing minimum four per cent of the GDP in the education sector.

Vice chancellors of 130 universities of Pakistan were unanimous while recommending solutions to all the ills marring education system of the country at a press conference held here on Tuesday at the end of vice chancellors’ meeting.

While speaking on the occasion, Engineer Imtiaz Hussain Gilani, Chairperson, Vice Chancellors’ Committee along with other vice chancellors said that during the meeting, nine working papers were presented which would put a positive impact on future policies of the universities.

The vice chancellors were pleased with the assurance given by finance minister Dr. Hafeez Shaikh that additional Rs4.60 billion funds would soon be released for the third and the fourth quarters.

They said that the amount would be utilised for raising 50 per cent and 15 per cent universities’ staff salaries as announced by the government in the last two years because previously the universities were unable to increase the salaries of their employees due to financial crunch.

They demanded that the federal government should allocate and release additional Rs2.5 billion development grant so that HEC’s ongoing projects might be completed.

Vice chancellors pledged to enhance the role of universities making them engines of socio-economic growth of the country in support of national economic policies.

The meeting figured out that higher education could not exist in isolation as it must integrally be linked to the entire education sector.Dawn.