Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) Pakistan on Monday hosted a send-off ceremony for the 141 students awarded under the Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship Programme for the academic year 2023-2024. The event was attended by Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed, Chairman HEC, Dr. Peter Dely, Charge d’Affaires here at the Embassy
of Hungary in Islamabad, Dr. Shaista Sohail, Executive Director HEC and Mrs. Ayesha Ikram, DG (Scholarships) HEC. This group of scholars forms the 8th cohort of the Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship Programme, which was launched in Pakistan in 2015. Since its inception, a total of 1029 Pakistani students have been granted fully funded scholarships for Bachelor’s, Master’s, One-Tier Master’s, and PhD studies across disciplines including Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, Arts and Humanities, Biological Sciences, Engineering and Technology, Health Sciences, Physical Sciences, and Social Sciences. During his address, Dr Mukhtar Ahmed stressed HEC’s commitment to nurturing education as a cornerstone of sustainable development and a vital stride towards building a knowledge-based economy. He underlined that the achievement of a knowledge economy is intrinsically tied to creating opportunities for such scholarship programmes. The chairman commended the Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship Programme role in providing Pakistani youth with the opportunity to pursue higher education and research in Hungary’s esteemed higher education institutions and empowering them to not only contribute to national development but also to play a part in the broader vision of a knowledge economy. Dr Ahmed congratulated this year’s scholarship recipients and offered valuable advice to the scholars, encouraging cultural sensitivity, fostering compatible friendships, and reminding them of their role as ambassadors for their homeland on the international stage. He expressed gratitude to the Hungarian Embassy for their invaluable support in executing the scholarships.
Dr Péter Dely congratulated the scholarship recipients, assuring them that their stay in Hungary will be an experience of a lifetime. He expressed his pleasure on the growing bilateral relations between the two countries. He pinned high hopes on scholars to evolve as ambassadors of goodwill and further strengthen the ties between Pakistan and Hungary through their experiences. Dr Shaista Sohail highlighted the Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship Programme as a symbol of Pakistan-Hungary bilateral cooperation.
She outlined the programme’s journey, beginning with the initial Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in December 2015, which facilitated 80 annual scholarships over three years. The first batch of 64 students embarked on their academic journey to Hungary in September 2016, marking a successful start. A revised MoU in 2017 elevated the annual scholarship count to 200, followed by a renewal in 2020, extending the partnership until December 2022. She continued by highlighting the programme’s significant growth, noting the recent agreement signed in February of this year by the Government of Hungary. This agreement underscores a substantial expansion, offering up to 400 scholarships annually across diverse educational levels for the next three years, from 2023 to 2025. The event also featured alumni of the scholarship programme who shared their experiences, serving as guiding lights for the outgoing scholars. Stipendium Hungaricum is an esteemed higher education scholarship programme initiated by the Hungarian Government. Designed to attract high-achieving international students, the programme is underpinned by educational agreements between Hungary and participating countries. With a presence in over 90 countries, Stipendium Hungaricum continues to bridge cultures and provide a platform for global education.
