ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi called for the promotion of distant education and e-learning which was cheaper and accessible for many people.
He emphasized the need for expanding the outreach of the Virtual University of Pakistan so that students from remote areas of the country could benefit from online education.
The President expressed these views during a briefing on Virtual University of Pakistan (VU) here at Aiwan-e-Sadr. Rector VU, Professor Dr Arshad Saleem Bhatti, briefed the meeting about the role of the university in the promotion of online education and distance learning.
He highlighted that currently 100,000 students were enrolled in various disciplines and over 80,000 students had graduated from the university. It was informed that VU was providing digital skills to its students, besides broadcasting lectures and educational content over its own four TV channels.
Addressing the meeting, the President asked the VU management to chalk out a new vision and future plans for the university as per the requirements of the digital age and set timelines to achieve its goals and objectives.
He also asked the Higher Education Commission (HEC) to expedite work on the finalization of its policy for virtual education, which would benefit the students belonging to remote areas of the country.
