ISLAMABAD: President Dr. Arif Alvi called on Tuesday for a reconsideration of national priorities in order to steer Pakistan out of its current socioeconomic and political difficulties.
He said it was the responsibility of all institutions’ leadership to focus on addressing the major challenges, such as overcoming poverty, improving the economy, controlling population growth, providing health and education facilities, and eliminating inequalities in society, particularly in the country’s rural areas.
According to the President Secretariat Press Wing, the president expressed these views while speaking to participants of the Senior Officers’ Leadership Course (SOLC-10) who called on him at Aiwan-e-Sadr.
President expresses sorrow over the 9th May Incidents
In his remarks to the officers, the president emphasized the importance of inculcating the spirit of forgiveness and love for humanity in order to promote tolerance and harmony in society. He expressed his sincere sorrow over the incidents on May 9th and emphasized the need of upholding the rule of law and holding only peaceful protests in the country.
The president criticized the fact that delayed decision-making stopped the country’s progress, saying that Pakistan needed to make faster decisions to stay up with the world’s exponential developments.
He said the rapid advancements in information technology (IT), artificial intelligence (AI), cloud and quantum computing, and cyber security needed Pakistan’s investment in youth education and skill development. While emphasizing the importance of cyber security, he said Pakistan should focus on enhancing its cyber capabilities in order to defend the country and its people from cyber warfare threats.
The president emphasized the importance of controlling population growth and providing quality education and health services to the people, citing education and health as the essential pillars of addressing poverty and ensuring socioeconomic development.
He regretted that almost 27 million children in Pakistan were out-of-schools and stressed the need to impart education to such children by adopting innovative solutions, especially online education, in addition to brick-and-mortar infrastructure development in the education sector.
