By Uzma Zafar
ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi Tuesday called for promoting arts education to effectively project the soft image of Pakistan.
He said that the government attached utmost significance to the education sector and was taking steps for the socio-economic progress of the country by focusing on human resource development. He made these remarks at a briefing on National College of Arts (NCA), Lahore, here at Aiwan-e-Sadr.
Principal NCA Prof. Dr. Murtaza Jafri briefed the President about the role of the college in promoting arts education in the country. The President urged the management of NCA to enhance outreach of the college by developing collaboration with international educational institutions of high repute. He emphasized the need to improve online education facilities which were cost-effective and provided easy access to students.
The President also highlighted the importance of adopting new technologies of the 4th Industrial Revolution enabling Pakistan to join the ranks of technologically-advanced countries. He also stressed the need for implementation of disability quota and facilitation of persons with disability by providing them easy access to college premises.
The President appreciated the role of NCA in providing arts education and assured the Principal of every possible support for success of the college.
Earlier, President Dr Arif Alvi on Monday asked the Pakistan Red Crescent to extend help to the victims of Palestine massacre through medical teams and first-aid supplies. “Have urged Pakistan Red Crescent to help victims of massacre that is taking place in Palestine. Offer medical teams, volunteers, supplies and tents,” the president said in a tweet. The president also called upon the member countries of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to come forward by extending humanitarian assistance to Palestinians besides highlighting the issue at international forums.
The President also shared an article by Bernie Sanders published in New York Times titled ‘The U.S must stop being an apologist for the Netanyahu government’. President Alvi, earlier in a letter addressed to his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas, had strongly condemned Israel’s violence and assured of Pakistan’s efforts in mobilizing the international community for the Palestinian cause.
He had also reaffirmed Pakistan’s abiding support for a just settlement of the Palestine issue in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions and for the establishment of an independent, viable and contiguous Palestinian state, with pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds-Al- Sharif as its capital.
Moreover, President Dr Arif Alvi Saturday said that the effective implementation of the anti-COVID standard operating procedures (SOPs) on Eid-ul-Fitr manifested the success of the government’s strategy.
The president, chairing a high level meeting to review the government’s measures for containment of the pandemic, expressed satisfaction over the adherence to the precautions by the masses on Eid.
Sindh Governor Imran Ismail, federal ministers Asad Umar and Ali Haider Zaidi, Senator Saif Abro, MNA Jai Prakash, MPAs Firdous Shamim Naqvi, Haleem Adil Sheikh, Khurram Sher Zaman, Bilal Ghaffar, Saeed Afridi and others attended the meeting.
