Peshawar - Special Assistant to Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Higher Education Kamran Khan Bangash on Wednesday said the provincial government will set up a dedicated sub-campus of the University of Engineering and Technology (UET) for the Afghan students in the provincial metropolis.
Addressing as chief guest at the orientation ceremony for the Afghan nationals recently enrolled in the UET Peshawar, Bangash said: “Pakistan and Afghanistan have cordial relations and both countries share the same religion, culture and borders but some international forces and internal elements in both countries are spreading propaganda to cause mistrust between the two neighbours.”
He said that under the directives of the Prime Minister, the KP government was supporting Afghan students through scholarships and equal academic facilities.
UET Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Iftikhar Hussain welcomed the Afghan students into UET and said that 175 Afghan students have been enrolled in the ‘Zero Semester’ course and they would apply to various universities after receiving two-month foundation level trainings.
“Also, another 132 Afghan students are already studying in the UET, Peshawar campus in various classes,” he added.
The VC said that the UET Peshawar had 42 engineering and non-engineering disciplines, where BSc, master’s and PhD programmes are offered.
Prof Dr Misbah, focal person for Afghan National Students, said that the ‘Zero Semester’ consisted of basic level training in Physics, Chemistry, English and Mathematics so that they become eligible to apply in their fields of interest for universities. He said that 3000 scholarships had been given to Afghan students and these scholarships covered living allowance, book allowance, hostel dues and university tuition fees.
