Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD,:Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Professor Ahsan Iqbal on Sunday said the country’s future hinged on equipping marginalized communities with modern education and access to quality healthcare.Speaking at the first annual “NAROCON-1” conference at Narowal Medical College, he stressed the urgent need to expand both educational and medical infrastructure to address deep-rooted inequalities and drive national progress.“The foundation of any society’s development lies in the empowerment of its most underprivileged through education. A healthy, educated population is the backbone of a prosperous nation,” he added.Sharing the confronted health challenges, he said the country bore one of the world’s highest burdens of Hepatitis C and continued to grapple with diseases like diabetes, cancer, polio and a growing incidence of mental health disorders. He labeled these health crises as “major roadblocks” to Pakistan’s socioeconomic growth.To tackle these issues, Ahsan Iqbal mentioned a comprehensive, three-year national healthcare initiative under the “URAAN PAKISTAN” program, under which Rs67 billion have been earmarked specifically for combating hepatitis and diabetes.“The healthcare sector is being overhauled along modern lines,” the minister said, stressing that medical research must take center stage.He highlighted ongoing efforts to decentralize higher education, adding campuses have been established in historically underserved regions, including Narowal, Noshki, Pishin, Khuzdar, Wadah, Gwadar, Turbat, FATA, and Sindh.He criticized those who opposed such expansion into remote areas, saying “Some self-proclaimed intellectuals sit on television and claim that new campuses should only be built in major cities.”He said true progress required by bridging the urban-rural divide, and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to human capital development as a cornerstone of national policy.
