Special Correspondent
MANCHESTER: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Minister for Education, Mr. Meena Khan, along with Prof. Dr. Zia Ul Haq, Vice Chancellor of Khyber Medical University (KMU), visited the University of Manchester to explore opportunities for academic and research collaboration.
They were welcomed by Prof. Nusrat Husain, Professor of Psychiatry and Director of Research in Global Mental Health at the University of Manchester, who highlighted ongoing UK Pakistan joint projects in health and education. Among the funded studies showcased were:
•ACROSS (NIHR203082): Affordable Cardiac Rehabilitation Outreach Inter-Disciplinary Strategic Study
•Moving on ABC (NIHR205561): Psychosocial Care Plan for Depression in Breast Cancer Patients
BURNS rehabilitation (NIHR203082)
Suicide Prevention in Youth (MRC Ref: MR/R022461/1)
The delegation also held discussions with Prof. Keith Brennan, Vice-Dean for Internationalisation, on establishing joint programmes in medicine, psychology, and allied health to prepare future leaders in healthcare and research.
The Pakistan delegation included Dr. Amna Noureen and Rabia Sattar, recipients of the NIHR GHR SPARC awards, Prof. Aneela Maqsood, Muqaddas Asif, Bushra Ali Shah from the Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning (PILL), and Dr. Atta Asif, Senior Scientist at Manchester Global Foundation. The ministerial team was joined by Prof. Dr. Jalil Khan, Director of Family Medicine at KMU, and Mr. Sajid Inam, Secretary of the Higher Education Regulatory Authority, Government of KP.
The delegation also toured the University’s advanced engineering laboratories with Dr. Kamal Qazi, focusing on the role of biotechnology in improving health outcomes and reducing inequalities.
Minister Meena Khan praised Prof. Husain and PILL’s leadership in driving research excellence, pledging KP’s support for initiatives that will strengthen educational growth, research capacity, and innovative projects in Pakistan.
