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9-1-2006

AKU Newsletter : September 2006, Volume 7,Issue 2Aga Khan University

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Recommended CitationAga Khan University, "AKU Newsletter : September 2006, Volume 7, Issue 2" (2006). AKU Newsletters. Book 4.http://ecommons.aku.edu/aku_newsletter/4

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THE AGA KHAN UNIVERSITY

NewsletterSEPTEMBER 2006 VOL 7. NO. 2

Aga Khan University is assisting in the rebuilding process ofAfghanistan, through Aga Khan University Hospital’s(AKUH) role in managing the French Medical Institute forChildren (FMIC) in Kabul. On April 8, President HamidKarzai of Afghanistan, French First Lady Mme. BernadetteChirac, and His Highness the Aga Khan, Chairman of the AgaKhan Development Network (AKDN), inaugurated the FMICin war ravaged Kabul. FMIC is a paediatric surgical hospital,founded by the French charitable organisations, La Chaîne del'Espoir and Enfants Afghans.

Afghanistan's dismal health care indicators are a cause foruniversal concern. The country has one of the world's highestinfant and maternal mortality rates. One child in four diesbefore the age of five. Every 30 minutes, a woman dies frompregnancy-related causes and the average life expectancy of42 years is one of the lowest in the world. The war torn countrysuffers from an acute lack of qualified and skilled health caremanpower. In some districts, there is just one doctor for 50,000people. Some large districts do not have access to a singlemedical doctor.

AKUH, Karachi has earned the reputation for its highstandards in medical and nursing care and making its servicesaccessible through its patient welfare programme. InAfghanistan, Aga Khan University School of Nursing (AKU-SON) has been training nurses for four years and its

AKU Manages Kabul Paediatric Hospitalcurriculum, which has been translated into Dari and Pashto,was adopted as the national standard.

Through the association with FMIC, AKUH will continue totrain Afghan physicians, nurses and technicians. A f g h a nphysicians associated with the FMIC will have an opportunityto receive training at AKUH in Karachi as well as at hospitalsin France.

FMIC specialises in paediatric care and aims to provideaccessible and cost-effective quality medical care to Afghanchildren. The 85-bed Hospital provides modern diagnostic,medical and surgical services and offers in-patient and out-patient services in paediatric medicine and surgery, cardiologyand orthopaedics.

Under the four-way partnership agreement, the French andAfghan governments as well as AKDN and private donors willprovide financial support for administrative staff, medicaltraining, equipment and patient welfare. La Chaîne de l'Espoirwill work with AKUH to bring surgeons, nurses and medicaltechnicians from France, other European countries and NorthAmerica for short term assignments.

This partnership will contribute towards the rebuilding ofAfghanistan by upgrading the infrastructure and manpoweravailable for improving health care statistics and ensuringenhanced quality of life for the people of Afghanistan.

Four party public private partnership: French First Lady Mme. Bernadette Chirac, President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan and His Highness the Aga Khan atthe inauguration of the French Medical Institute for Children in Kabul.

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Department of Psychiatry Focuses on Earthquake Rehabilitation

The picturesque valleys of Kashmir and Northern A r e a sreverberated with terrifying rumbles as mountain aftermountain shook and spilled its heart out in the Himalayanearthquake last October. A year later, the mountains reflect aneerie sadness, a deep seated grief that feels eternally etched inthe collective memory of the people in the region. Prolongedgrief and the agony of losing loved ones cause far reachingpsychological damage for generations. Without assistance, thewhole population is at risk of developing severe psychologicalissues that would adversely affect the rehabilitation process inthe long run.

Department of Psychiatry's continued efforts to help in therehabilitation process of earthquake victims have focused oncapacity building and training programmes. Apart from healthprofessionals, efforts have also focused on training volunteersfor handling grief and counselling others in order to ensuresustainable progress in alleviation of psychological trauma inearthquake victims.

A team of senior faculty members led by Chairman andProfessor, Department of Psychiatry, Dr Murad M Khanimparted training in Basic Counselling Skills at a workshop forvolunteers, health professionals and staff of NGOs working inthe earthquake-affected areas. The three-day workshop washeld in Karachi in collaboration with Pakistan Association ofMental Health (PAMH).

The impact of all these various activities has been significant.Mental health is a grossly neglected area in Pakistan and by itsvarious earthquake relief activities related to mental health, theAKU Psychiatry Department has helped raise the profile of

mental health issues in Pakistan generally. More than ahundred health professionals and other personnel, includingvolunteers, have been trained by the department inpsychosocial counselling skills and recognition andmanagement of mental health problems at primary care level.Many of the trained people now serve as resource persons forvarious organisations.

Through its participation in various forums and trainingprogrammes, the Department has also established links with anumber of academic institutions and various NGOs. Inresponse to requests, the Department has shared its trainingmaterials and programme contents with many otherinstitutions and individuals - both from within Pakistan andabroad. The Department continues to be approached byvarious individuals, institutions and NGOs for advice,assistance and training of their personnel.

A number of publications in international journals have alsoemanated from the faculty's experience, while some others arein the pipeline. These have drawn attention to the challengesfaced by mental health professionals in Pakistan and have beenthe focus of discussion at various forums.

Reflecting on the experience of working in the affected areas,Professor Khan, says, "Everywhere we went, people hadstories to tell. The stories we heard were truly heart wrenching.It was challenging, yet one of the most humbling experiencesfor us." As care and compassion combine with professionalexpertise to heal the psychological scars of the affectees, thereis promise of a sound and sustainable rebuilding for familiesaffected by this tragedy of colossal proportions.

Dr Naim Siddiqi and Dr Murad Khan at a group counselling session in Garhi Habibullah.

Samina was a 19-year old medical student at the time her fatherlost his life on the way to the hospital in an ill-equipped,inadequately manned ambulance. The vehicle had noemergency equipment on board; not even an oxygen cylinder;neither was there a trained paramedic to accompany thedistressed cardiac patient who fought for his life throughout thefateful journey. To the utter dismay of Samina, her 60-year oldfather breathed his last a few yards away from the firstopportunity of medical assistance, just as the vehicle turned toenter the gates of AKUH.

This incident is one of many over the past years that led AKU’sE m e rgency Medicine section to organise the researchsymposium titled, 'Trauma, Injuries and Disasters: Researchand Training Imperatives' in February. It was the first event ofits kind, drawing attention to the neglected issue of emergencyresponse for accidents, disasters and injuries. The recentearthquake disaster in Kashmir and the northern areas furtherhighlighted the necessity of this seminar, organised underJohns Hopkins-Aga Khan University InternationalCollaborative Trauma and Injury Research Training (ICTIRT)Programme at AKU.

Delegates from three countries shared experiences andresearch findings from their own regions. Special emphasiswas laid on the situation in Low to Middle Income Countries(LMIC), where integrated emergency response systems usuallydo not exist.

The delegates noted that normally trauma and injuries receiveattention only after a disaster has struck, and stressed on theneed for raising awareness among donor organisations as wellas governments to establish a comprehensive system to dealwith emergencies.

Health Policy and Systems Specialist, Dr Abdul Ghaffar fromGlobal Forum for Health Research, Geneva, pointed out that in

LMIC especially, attention wasfocused on injuries only whenthere was a catastrophe. He alsosaid that none of the major donorswere willing to commit significantresources to injury prevention. Hementioned poor regulatorymeasures and sketchy legalsystems as factors aff e c t i n gresearch in injury prevention andcontrol.

The symposium highlighted a number of actions necessary to produce better results in futureincluding introducing this subject in the curriculum at theu n d e rgraduate level. The needsidentified at the symposiumincluded the training of scientistsand health professionals in the principles of injury control,

e fforts to raise awareness andfoster national and international collaboration amongresearchers.

As a follow up tothe symposium, atrauma and injuriesworking group hasbeen established tohold regularmeetings for thedevelopment of ac o m p r e h e n s i v eplan. An integratedemergency responsesystem is beingd e v e l o p e dinvolving hospitals,care units andemergency vehiclesas well asspecialised trainingo f h e a l t hprofessionals ininjury control.Dr Ellen MacKenzie of Johns Hopkins University BloombergSchool of Public Health, USA, articulated the long term visionof ICTIRT that i n c l u d e s the establishment of aprogramme or institute for injury and trauma research andtraining at AKU that can serve Pakistan and other parts ofSouth Asia.

This symposium was a major step forward in the field ofemergency medicine in Pakistan. As efforts to put together anintegrated system continue, hope is kindled for Samina andmany others like her, who might be saved the traumaticexperience of losing their loved ones through timely andeffective preventive measures.

Emergency Medicine SymposiumTrauma, Injuries and Disasters

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A working group has been established to prepare a comprehensive emergency response plan.

Dr Junaid Razzak, Head of Emergency Medicine Section and Assistant Pro f e s s o r, A K U .

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p r a c t i c ee x a m i n a t i o n sbefore the finale x a m i n a t i o n sof 2 0 0 7 .T h e p r a c t i c eexamination forG r a d e I Xs t u d e n t s in1 6 S S Csubjects wass u c c e s s f u l l ycompleted inMay. A total of 2,250 candidates were examined in 52 centreslocated in every province of Pakistan.

E-marking is based on special software developed by AKU.The secure system sends images of each sheet of thecandidate's response to a different specially trained teachersitting in front of a computer screen to enter scores accordingto a specific mark scheme for the question. The marks are thenautomatically assigned to the candidate without revealing the

Health care research in a developing country is directly linkedto the improvement in its health care indicators. Given itsunique socio-economic set up, Pakistan offers research andinvestigation opportunities in all social sectors includinghealth sciences. Researchers at AKU have actively respondedto the need for indigenous data to facilitate advancements inhealth care for the local population.

The volume of research in health sciences being carried out atAKU accounts for about a third of all indexed health sciencespublications from Pakistan each year. At any given time, thereare as many as 500 research projects in progress at AKUhighlighting the need to bring investigators together on aforum to facilitate collaboration and enrichment in researchactivities. This led to the first Health Sciences ResearchAssembly in 2005.

In 2006, a total of 484 abstracts were submitted by almost 80%of the 250 faculty members from all academic units. Over all,240 posters were displayed on each day of the two-day event,which surpassed the anticipated target of 200 posters per day.

An analysis shows that about 600 abstracts presented in thelast two years were unpublished. Only about 300 researcharticles were published in a year against an annual output of500 abstracts. "To lower the gap, we are developing amechanism not only to monitor the publication status of eachabstract but to support faculty in grants writing and manuscript

writing," said Dr Anwar Siddiqui, Associate Dean of Researchat AKU.

"The Research Assembly is an opportunity for juniorresearchers to learn and gain confidence through exposure andinteraction with peers and seniors. "This will have a positiveimpact on the research environment at AKU and Pakistan,"said Dr Mohammad Wasay, Chair of the Assembly OrganisingCommittee and Associate Professor of Neurology.

Research Assembly has been a success in terms of enhancingresearch ethos at AKU and is becoming a hub for sharing,collaboration and University-based compilation of researchwork.

Health Sciences Research Assembly 2006Faculty Produced Nearly 500 Abstracts

Faculty members discuss one of the 240 posters displayed.

Aga Khan University Examination BoardSuccessfully Conducts E-Marking Practice ExamsAga Khan University Examination Board (AKU-EB) wasestablished in 2003 with the objective of introducing a reliableand efficient method of examination to positively influence theoverall school education system. The step was taken inresponse to persistent requests from several quarters likeschools, students, educationists and parents to introduceimproved methods of examining candidates for SecondarySchool Certificate and Higher Secondary Certificate.

After careful consideration and research, AKU-EB decided tointroduce an electronic marking system to anchor the proposedimprovement in standards. Electronic marking is the mostadvanced approach used in the developed countries. Thisinitiative of AKU-EB makes Pakistan only the third country inthe world using this method.

With an objective of putting a proper system in place, AKU-EBhas imparted teachers' training programmes throughout thecountry but has also provided to students free of cost learningmaterial to help them meet the new examination criteria thatmeasures knowledge, understanding, and application.

In order to familiarise its stakeholders with this newlydeveloped system, AKU-EB provided them an opportunity of Continued on page 7

Students taking the first practice examinations in May 2006.

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and school administrators from all over Eastern A f r i c a ,including Mozambique, Angola and Congo.

Of particular significance was the support of the younger citizens around the world. A K U ’s PartnershipCampaign included an appeal to youth in all countries to help build a Sports Centre at the new AKU-FAS campus. In 1996, 50,000 youth around the world contributed $3 million to build a Sports and Rehabilitation Centre onStadium Road. This time, the youth of the world exceeded thecommitment with $5 million for a new Sports Centre on thenew campus.

The success of the global campaign was largely due to thevolunteers including over 1,000 Ismaili volunteers around theworld. Volunteers also played a major role in the success ofappeals in the non-Ismaili sectors, especially in Pakistan.Munnawar Hamid, a Member of the University’s Board ofTrustees, and Chairman of the volunteer ResourceDevelopment Committee, Corporate said, "Our success infunding major new patient services buildings on the StadiumRoad campus, as well as patient welfare at the UniversityHospital, is entirely the result of hard work by volunteers,many of whom are the captains of industry and commerce inPakistan."

The latest Aga Khan University Partnership Campaign hasmoved the University to a new level. Donors and volunteersfrom all communities, in all countries, and from all levels ofsociety, pledged their financial, moral and intellectual supportin unprecedented numbers. Commenting on the success of thePartnership Campaign, incoming AKU President Firoz Rasulsaid, "AKU is truly fortunate and in a unique position to havesuch a generous international donor and volunteer base thatcontinues to propel the institution’s trajectory to becoming oneof the great universities of the world."

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Enthusiastic Response to Global Fundraising Campaign

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From the cities and prairies of NorthAmerica, to the towns and plains ofAfrica, to the metropolitan areasand villages of South Asia, A g aKhan University attracted over(US) $83 million in its PartnershipCampaign. "It was anoverwhelming response bythousands of donors around theworld," said retiring A K UPresident, Shamsh Kassim-Lakha,"and a resounding endorsement ofAKU ’s efforts to become an agentof change in the developing world."

Beginning in Va n c o u v e r, Canada inSeptember 2004, and ending inBujumbura, Burundi in March ofthis year, the global fundraising wasfar reaching.

Kassim-Lakha explained, "In thepast our campaigns have onlysought support from Ismailicommunities around the world. T h i stime we limited our Ismailicampaign to 80 per cent of thecampaign target, or $66.4 million.The remaining $16.6 million camefrom donors – individuals and corporations from all faiths andcommunities – who see AKU as an effective partner in globale fforts to reduce poverty and lack of opportunity in developingsocieties through education."

Funds raised in the Partnership Campaign will be used tosupport a wide range of AKU programmes and services inPakistan, East Africa, Afghanistan and the United Kingdom.They include enhancement of existing endowments in theFaculty of Health Sciences, and the creation of a newendowment to provide long term funding for teacherdevelopment programmes at the Institute for EducationalDevelopment in Karachi. Funds will also be used to encouragemore research, not just in medicine and basic sciences, but alsoin nursing and education. Several new professorships and chairsin the Medical College and School of Nursing will also befunded from the campaign.

Other pledges, from mainly corporate donors in Pakistan, willbe allocated to the cost of construction of the recently openedIbn Zuhr Building for cancer services at Aga Khan UniversityHospital in Karachi. Already this fully equipped building iso ffering life-saving radiotherapy services to cancer suff e r e r sfrom all over Pakistan. Additional funds raised will help fundthe extension of the Hospital’s Emergency Room andconstruction of a new Day Surgery and Imaging Building.

To support the University’s expanding activities in Africa, agroup of corporate leaders in Canada accepted an invitation topartner with AKU in establishing a $20 million Institute forEducational Development in East Africa. Located in Dar- e s -Salaam, Tanzania on shared land for a new Aga Khan A c a d e m y,the new teacher training institute will replicate and build onsuccessful graduate study and certificate programmes at theAKU-IED in Pakistan. The new facility will draw teachers

50,000 youth around the world contributed $3 million to build a Sports and Rehabilitation Centre on Stadium Road.

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AKU is a Creative, Entrepreneurial UniversityShamsh Kassim-Lakha is the man who led the effort to turn avision into reality. Having started as "Project Director" in1979,he stepped down as President of AKU in 2006. Kassim-Lakhareflects on the institution he nurtured from the Chancellor’sidea into a vibrant University, with presence across threecontinents.

Q Yo u r reflections on the birth of the first privateUniversity in Pakistan?

A The creation of this remarkable institution was a very bolddecision both by the Government of Pakistan and HisHighness the Aga Khan. Higher education was considered tobe responsibility of governments.

The founder of AKU, His Highness the Aga Khan and hisancestors have a long and illustrious history of establishinguniversities. Over a thousand years ago, Imam Al-Muizz, thehead of the Fatimid dynasty, established the A l - A z h a rUniversity of Cairo, possibly the oldest functioning university.Much, much later in the early 20th century, Sir SultanMahommed Shah, the grandfather of His Highness was one ofthe founders of the Aligarh Muslim University in India, whichis credited to be the birth place of the concept of Pakistan.

The birth of a university is an event of exceptional significanceas universities are acknowledged to have major impact on thesocieties they serve. When the decision to charter AKU wasfirst taken, I was deeply moved by the fact that we werecreating an Institution that, Insha Allah, has the potential ofperpetual life, for it is well known that universities are in themajority among the oldest living institutions in the world.

Q AKU has earned the reputation for having a culture ofexcellence, how did you sustain moral and ethical valuesand meritocracy?

A The credit of introducing what you describe as "a culture ofexcellence" must go to every one at AKU, from the ChancellorHis Highness the Aga Khan to the Board of Trustees, thefaculty and the staff. Innumerable donors and volunteers havenurtured and supported this culture. My own role was to be acoordinator and a focal point for ensuring that the vision of theChancellor and the Board of Trustees was implemented inletter and spirit, while keeping cultural and other sensitivitiesin perspective.

From the very beginning, we made a decision to practicemeritocracy and espouse the highest moral and ethical values.This was not easy. In developing countries, there are alwayspressures to be flexible and accommodate requests frominfluential quarters.

Once we decided that we will follow the path of merit withrespect to admission of students or appointment of faculty andstaff, it required the University and me as its leader to steadfastly stick to this principle. If there was no precedence forgranting favour, it would be difficult for anyone to exertpressure on the University's leadership to bend the rules.

Founding President Shamsh Kassim-Lakha.

As to moral and ethical values, we regularly practice these inour behaviours. Whether students, faculty and staff, everyoneat the University, senior or junior, without exception knowsthat the University expects them to adhere to a value set. Thesenior most persons have to lead by example, acting asimportant role models.

Q What is unique about the governance of AKU?

A In one sense, AKU does not necessarily have a uniquegovernance structure. But, it has several distinctive featureswhich have made a major contribution to its rapid andimpressive growth. It has an international Board of Trusteesthat is responsible for defining the strategic direction of theUniversity and oversees implementation by management andthen monitoring progress.

A critical factor of success is that during the early decades, theBoard was deeply engaged with the faculty as well as seniormanagement to ensure that strong foundations are laid withrespect to academic, financial and administrative policies inaddition to the quality of the University's academic and serviceprogrammes.

In many ways, the Chancellor's role and his involvement is themost unique strength of its governance. The Charter enablesthe Chancellor to attend Board meetings and preside overthem. His wisdom and experience are invaluable to the Boardin making sound decisions for a University that functions insix countries in the context of political, economic, regulatoryand cultural sensitivities and diversity that they represent.

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Continued from page 4

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Q What is the key to being able to mobilise support andcooperation from donors?

A AKU has multiple constituencies of donors which includeinternational donor agencies, as well as corporate andindividual contributors in Pakistan and other countries. Ofcourse, there cannot be just one 'key' to accessing support fromthese heterogeneous donors.

If I had to pick the most important factor, I would identify trustin the institution. Whether international donor agencies orindividual donors, their support for a programme or a newphysical facility will only come, if they were assured that theirmoney will have the desired impact, will be spent effectivelyand efficiently and that they will receive good value, properevaluation and feedback on the use of their contribution.Beyond trust, funds will only be forthcoming if wecommunicate with them and develop their confidence. Eachdonor constituency requires its own appropriate approach andeach must feel a sense of 'ownership' of the University.

Q And from higher education institutions?

A Even here, the principle issue is that of trust. Trust withrespect to matters of quality and willingness to cooperatetowards a common agreed set of objectives. Unless bothcollaborating institutions benefit from such cooperation, theirlinkage will not endure. These are the factors that have enabledAKU to forge long lasting relationships with Harvard, JohnsHopkins, Oxford, McMaster universities and KarolinskaInstitute of Sweden to name just a few of the higher educationinstitutions .

Q In your post-AKU period, how would you apply yourextensive experience in improving the quality of life inPakistan and other parts of the world?

A As it has been only a few months since I retired from theUniversity, I am still in the process of thinking through how Imight apply the experience I have been so fortunate to gainduring my association with AKU and AKDN. I am, however,fully committed to share this experience within Pakistan andother developing countries both with AKDN and otherinstitutions. His Highness the Aga Khan has kindly proposedmy involvement at a policy level with some A K D Ninstitutions.

candidate's identity. This means every AKU-EB candidatereceives the benefit of over 80 judgments by different subjecte x p e r t s .

E-marking has not only made it possible to announce results withinsix weeks of the examinations, but a detailed feedback is also sentto the schools so that the teachers can work on the areas that needimprovement. It produces rapid and extremely accurateassessments which will be available to candidates and schools bythe end of June.

The AKU written software will be offered to the other boards inPakistan and elsewhere after it has been thoroughly tested.

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Aga Khan UniversityExamination Board

SCHEDULE OF EVENTSSeptember - December 2006

Programme Date

"The credit of introducing aculture of excellence must go tothe founder and Chancellor HisHighness the Aga Khan to theBoard of Trustees, the faculty andthe staff."

Also, President Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Azizhave recently appointed me to the senior level NationalCommission for Government Reforms in Pakistan. My initialengagement here has been gratifying as already many of thelessons I learnt at AKU and AKDN are proving relevant to thework of the Commission.

Requests have also come from development agencies,academic institutions and business organisations to share thebenefits of my experience with them. In the coming weeks, Iwill carefully evaluate where my involvement could make themost difference to society.

Continued Medical Education ( C M E )

• World Heart Day Sept 21

• World Diabetes Day Nov 16• Seminar on World Aids Day Dec 1• Workshop On Joint Pain (CPD) TBA

'Signs, Symptoms and Care' (SSC)Public Health Aw a reness Pro g r a m m e• SSC Karachi: Sept 23

Nov 4 Dec 2

• Hyderabad: Sept 8 Sept 22 Nov 24 Dec 29

• Quetta: Sept 22

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At a time when higher education worldwide, is facingenormous challenges from forces of globalisation, theUniversity Exhibition in Kenya provided a much neededplatform for discussion for academics and students. The fourthKenya University Exhibition was held at the KenyattaInternational Conference Centre in March 2006.

The Assistant Minister for Education, Mrs Beth Mugo opened the four-day event. It brought together 15 public andprivate universities, one constituent college, the Commissionfor Higher Education (CHE), the Joint Admissions Board(JAB) and the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB). Thetheme this year was ‘The University as a Catalyst forDevelopment.’

The participants at the exhibition exchanged views on the wayforward for the role of universities as catalysts of developmentand progress and the need to foster synergy betweenuniversities and the industry. Visitors expressed admiration forAKU's programmes being offered in the East African region.The exhibition was officially closed by Professor KaregaMutahi, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry for Education, whoencouraged AKU to "keep up with our specialisation" in thearea of health sciences in East Africa .

AKU's participation in the exhibition was an opportunity forvisitors to learn more about the University’s presence andprogrammes in East Africa, its contributions and future plans inits role as a catalyst of progress and development in the region.

Kenya University Exhibition

Universities as Catalysts to Development and Progress

serious condition when she was brought to the E m e rgency Room at AKUH.

An initial check-up at AKUH revealed that Sajna was suff e r i n gfrom pneumonia and meningitis andwas admitted to the Intensive CareUnit. When Wali Dad was informedthat his daughter was expected toremain in the hospital for at least 10 to20 days, he reached into his pocket too ffer Rs 5,000 ($ 83) to the staff andbroke into tears. He was not sure hewould be able to get treatment for hischild. The staff informed him thatSajna's treatment had been startedalready and directed him to the PatientWelfare Department.

Sajna was admitted for 13 days. Shebegan improving after receiving careand attention from the doctors andnurses. The Hospital and medicinec h a rges amounted to Rs 214,997 ($3,569)which were paid from theHospital's Patient Welfare Programme,while Wali Dad and his family

contributed a total of Rs 15,000 ($ 259). The baby wasd i s c h a rged after recovering fully.

Wali Dad has now taken Sajna back to Mirpur Sakhro to ajubilant mother who cannot thank God enough when she seesa healthy Sajna sleeping soundly in her little crib by herb e d s i d e .

Aga Khan University Hospital's Patient Welfare Programmeo ffers financial assistance to those patients who are unable toa fford the medical cost of treatment. In 2005, 74 per cent of allpatients treated at AKUH were from low to middle-incomegroups. Since the inception of the welfare programme in 1986,over Rs 1.4 billion ($ 30.2 million) has been disbursed to morethan 250,000 needy patients.

Wali Dad looked at his three-month old daughter Sajna withw o r r y. For a little over a month, Wali Dad had been carryingthe infant around from doctor to doctor in his home townMirpur Sakhro to seek treatment for her persistent fever. T h ebaby's condition had shown no signs of improvement, insteadit was deteriorating by the day. Looking at her pale face in thedim light from the small bulb in the room, Wali Dad suddenlyrealised it was essential for him to take the little girl to Karachiin order to save her life.

Adriver by profession, Wali Dad earned Rs 3,500 (US $58) permonth to support a family of 13. It was going to be an uphilltask collecting money to afford treatment at a city hospital. Heknew it would mean stretching his already strained resources tothe limit. But he could see no other hope. Sajna was in very

Patients' Welfare Programme

Little Blessings

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As developments in different fields converge to enrich andinfluence modern society, multidisciplinary activities havetaken centre stage in education worldwide. AKU's SpecialLecture Series programme is a part of its policy of encouragingbroad-based education. Eminent personalities are invited toshare, reflect and engage in meaningful dialogue.

This year, students, faculty, staff and their guests were treatedto a series of thought-provoking lectures by distinguishedguests like Cambridge Professor Haroon Ahmed ,Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon andprominent artiste Salima Hashmi under the Special LectureSeries at AKU.

Excellence Breeds Excellence

At the beginning of the year,Professor Haroon A h m e d ,Professor Emeritus ofMicroelectronics atCambridge University andMaster of the Corpus ChristiCollege, UK, examined thefactors that led to the ascentof Cambridge to be a greatuniversity in his discoursetitled ‘Newton to DNA -800years of a great university:Are there lessons for today'suniversities?’

The eminent speaker statedthat a university cannot beimpervious to changes in thesocial and economic conditions of its constituency. Heillustrated with examples how the stimulus from a benefactorcan enable a centre of learning to contribute to national andglobal development.

He emphasised the importance of an environment ofinspiration and said that a great university is great because ofits alumni. "Excellence breeds excellence and once one has acore of achievement in a university, the rest will follow,provided an environment is maintained that is conducive toscholarship and learning."

Under One Umbrella – The CommonwealthPerspective

In February, HisExcellency RightHonourable DonaldC. McKinnon, theS e c r e t a r y - G e n e r a lo f t h eC o m m o n w e a l t ha d d r e s s e d thea u d i e n c e . Heexplored how theCommonwealth, aglobal organisationof 53 member-states, straddlingevery continent,

religion, ethnic group and level of economic development,helps to shape the agenda of the international community.

He said that alienation, marginalisation and exclusion werephenomena that had many roots including religion, languageand culture. But, he added, so were poverty, illiteracy,environmental degradation and perceived political injustice."So we all have to work harder to ensure that people in anysociety, wherever they live, are not made to feel that they areoutsiders, that they are marginalised, that they don't haveequality of opportunity, that they must simply give up indespair on their children's future."

Beyond the Veil

In March,eminent arte d u c a t o r ,S a l i m aH a s h m ic a p t i v a t e da u d i e n c e swith herdiscourse ont h ec o n t r i b u t i o nof women inc o n t e m p o r a r yart. Salimapresented asocial studyr e g a r d i n gw o m e n ' splace inm o d e r nhistory and itsreflection inthe works ofart created bywomen. Herdiscussion ofthe changesin the artvocabulary ofw o m e nh i g h l i g h t e dthe relationbetween thestimuli provided by the socio political environment of the 80'sand the way women artistes chose to react. She elaboratedupon how the imposition of the chaadar or the veil altered thecourse of expression for many women artistes in differentgenres. "Responding to the flaunting of this official symbol of'protection', women artists, poets and writers focused insteadon this piece of fabric as a symbol of their disenfranchisement.The chaadar's physical, religious, spiritual and mythicalaspects stimulated a range of visual and literary responses."

Past speakers at the Special Lecture Series have includedH.R.H. Prince Hasan of Jordan; Professor Stanley Wolpert,author of 'Jinnah of Pakistan', Ambassador Dr Maleeha Lodhi,Sahabzada Yaqub Khan and acclaimed artist Gulgee.

For details visit: www.aku.edu

Special Lectures Create Stimulating Debate: C a m b r i d g eP ro f e s s o r, A rt Educator and Commonwealth Secre t a ry - G e n e r a l

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Faculty and Staff Circle the GlobeD r Fauzia Khan, Tajdin H. Jaff e rProfessor and Chairperson,Department of A n a e s t h e s i a ,delivered a lecture for B.S. PreraOration on Radiation Safety andAnaesthesia at the A n n u a lConference of College ofAnaesthetists of Sri Lanka inColombo in January 2006. Shewas awarded a Gold Medal for theoration. It was the first time anorator was invited from outsideSri Lanka, which is a recognitionof the quality of the research work

presented. The original work that was part of the presentationwas conducted in the Department of Anaesthesia, AKU and hasrecently appeared in the leading International A n a e s t h e s i aJournal published from UK.

D r Thomas Christie, D i r e c t o r,AKU-EB, Narjis Abbas, SeniorO ff i c e r, SSC Science, and HinaAshraf, Consultant for A K U -EB, attended the fourthinternational conference ofAssociation of CommonwealthExaminations and A c c r e d i t a -tion Body in Jamaica in March2006. Dr Christie and HinaAshraf jointly presented a paperon ‘Parental Expectations of

Educational Outcomes’ and Narjis Abbas presented a paper on‘Assuring Quality in a New ICT Syllabus’. They sharedexperiences of other participants in conduct of exams in severeweather conditions and with multicultural ethnic background intheir own countries. Narjis Abbas and Hina Ashraf visitedCaribbean Exam Council on Vocational Education and Tr a i n i n gto study their standards criteria and conduct of exam proceduresalong with portfolio assessment for science practical activities.The sharing and study of other examination and accreditationbodies will be helpful in designating AKU-EB standards andmoderation policies.

D r Yasmin A m a r s i , Dean, A g aKhan University School ofNursing was invited as a plenaryspeaker and panelist to talk on‘ Women and Children inEarthquake Camps – theirVulnerabilities and Risks’ at theInternational Conference ‘Impactof Global Issues on Women andC h i l d r e n ’ held at Dhaka,Bangladesh in February 2006.The conference was jointlyo rganised by the McMasterU n i v e r s i t y, Canada and StateUniversity of Bangladesh.

N a s reen Hussain, Associate Professor, Centre of EnglishLanguage presented a paper on ‘Efficacy of Distance Educationin the Professional Development of English Language Te a c h e r s :

An Overview’ at the T E S O LArabia 2006 Conference held inDubai, UAE in March. Herpaper was singular in that itpresented data on the impactdistance programmes have onthe learners, specially thosewho have to balance theirprofessional growth with otherfamily commitments. T h efindings of the research wereappreciated by the audiencebecause the results of the studyinvolving female teachers fromSouth Asia, were relevant toArab teachers with similarcultural values.

D r Lubna Kamani, R e s i d e n t ,G a s t r o e n t e r o l o g y, was on astudy visit at theGastroenterology Unit of theRussell Hall Hospital Dudley,UK, with Professor A d r i a nHamlyn in March this year. Hervisit was sponsored by RoyalCollege of Physicians (UK). DrKamani is the first fromPakistan to receive this bursary.During this visit, she met

renowned GI experts like Dr Roy Pounder and Dr RogerWilliams and is now planning to start a new research protocol onprobiotics in irritable bowel syndrome. Dr Kamani alsoobserved procedures like capsule endoscopy, double balloonenteroscopy and endoscopic ultrasound, which are not yetavailable in Pakistan.

D r M a rcia A. Grant, H e a dPlanning, Faculty of Arts andSciences, spoke on a panelabout The Worldwide Quest forNew Universities, at the annual meeting of theprestigious Association ofAmerican Colleges andUniversities in Wa s h i n g t o n ,D.C. in January.

Working Group for Women (WGW) celebrated theInternational Women's Day with global leaders. A panel ofWGW members including the chairperson Sabahat Tatari,Assistant Professor, Centre of English Language, representedAKU in ‘Women as Global Leaders Conference’ held byZayed University in Abu Dhabi in March 2006. T h econference provided an opportunity for interacting withprominent women leaders, establishing world widepartnerships, sharing experiences and learning from others.Sessions focused on new ideas in leadership education, withparticular attention devoted to cross-cultural perspectives andthe empowerment of women. The conference focused on‘Communities in Transition’, highlighting women's leadershiproles within community and social change. Representing over70 countries, it brought together female leaders, students,faculty and practitioners on common concerns of how women,leadership, and education anchor and transform thecommunities in which they live.

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physicians; public advocacydevoted to improvedawareness about stroke,headache, dementia and othercommon n e u r o l o g i c a lailments; and scholarship,in c l u di n g n e u r o -epidemiological research aswell as editorship of the multi-disciplinary Pakistan Journalof Neurological Sciences.

Dr Ali Khan Khuwaja, Assistant Professor, FamilyMedicine and Community Health Sciences, conducted amulti-centre, clinic-based research study to estimate theproportion of long term complications and its associatedfactors among people with type 2 diabetes and to assess thequality of care provided to them in different clinical settingsin Karachi.

Lack of indigenous data in adeveloping country likePakistan makes it difficult todevise strategies on nationallevel to prevent and treat theoccurrence of major diseases.Poor economic indicators are asignificant influence on theprevalence of chronic kidneydiseases. Less than 10 per centof kidney failure patientsreceive renal replacementt h e r a p y, while most of thepatients who receive dialysis,die or stop treatment within the first three months because ofcost constraints.

Supported by the evolving research culture at AKU, AssociateProfessor and Head Section of Nephrology, Dr Tazeen Jafar(MBBS '90) has conducted major research work on the burdenof chronic kidney disease in this part of the world. Funded bymajor research grants from organisations like the WellcomeTrust, UK and the NIH-Fogarty International Centre, Dr Jafar

Dr Tazeen Jafar - Research on Chronic Kidney Diseasesin Pakistan

AKU Neurologists Win Honours

Award for Dr Khuwaja

Three neurologists from AKU havebeen recognised through national andinternational awards for contributionsto their profession. Dr MohammadWa s a y, Associate Professor, washonoured this year by the AmericanAcademy of Neurology for effortstowards promotion of undergraduateand postgraduate teaching of clinicalneurology in Pakistan. Nominationsfor this international Teacher Recognition award, given yearlyat the Academy's annual meeting, are received from around theworld; Dr Wasay is the first recipient from Pakistan. Dr Wasayhas also been honoured with AKU's Outstanding TeacherAward 2005, which recognises the recommendations of peersand students.

In April this year, the PakistanSociety of Neurology at its annualmeeting honoured Dr MughisSheerani, Assistant Professor, withthe Distinguished Teacher awardand Dr Saad Shafqat (MBBS '88),Associate Professor, with the Leaderin Neurology award. Dr Sheerani'saward recognises contributions toneurological education, based onpeer review as well as assessmentand evaluations from students andtrainees.

Dr Shafqat has been recognised for promoting neurology inPakistan through continuing medical education activitiesraising professional expertise among neurologists and general

has published the first ever population-based studies from thisregion defining the nature and burden of these ailments inPakistan.

Population-based research provides the most robust data withwidespread generalisability and requires a very high level ofrigor and is difficult to execute.

In her article recently published in the prestigious NewEngland Journal of Medicine (NEJM), Dr Jafar highlights thegrowing epidemic of chronic kidney diseases in Pakistan,reviews the published literature and offers solutions to thismajor medical problem purely from a Pakistani health careperspective. This is the first invited article in the NEJM fromPakistan.

Dr Jafar was trained at Tufts University and Harvard School ofPublic Health. She has written defining articles on the burden,distribution and prevalence of chronic kidney andcardiovascular diseases in Pakistan, which were published inleading peer reviewed journals including the Annals of InternalMedicine, Circulation, American Heart Journal and KidneyInternational.

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2004 – 2005’ for his workentitled ‘Metabolic syndromeand its association with ischemicheart disease in patients withtype 2 diabetes mellitus inKarachi’. This award is made bythe ASEAN countries’Federation of EndocrineSocieties (AFES). This year, 145research papers were submittedfrom all over the world includingUnited States, Europe, A s i aPacific region and South Asia.He is the first Pakistani to havereceived this award.

He was awarded the ‘Young Investigator Award for the years

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AKU-IED's Conference on Quality in EducationAga Khan University Institute for Educational Development(AKU-IED) held an International Conference on ‘Quality in Education: Teaching and Leadership in ChallengingTi m e s ’ in February. The main objectives of the conferencewere to provide a forum for dissemination of educationalresearch on quality in teaching, leadership, teacher educationand related issues; enable discussion on issues of quality with reference to the conference themes; and promotenetworking and enable contact among the variousstakeholders engaged in educational research. The conferencethemes were:

• Quality in teacher education;

• Leadership for quality teaching;

• Globalisation and teaching and learning.

Dr Hamida Khuhro, Minister for Education and Literacy,Government of Sindh, was the chief guest at the openingc e r e m o n y. Lauding AKU-IED's work, Dr Khuhro said thatsince its inception, the Institute has been engaged indeveloping and delivering quality programmes in education.She highlighted the significance of the series of policydialogues conducted by AKU-IED during the past three yearson key issues in education with government and othera g e n c i e s .

Earlier in his welcome address, Founding President ShamshKassim-Lakha, pointed out that in many low-incomecountries, teachers do not meet even the minimum requiredstandards for their profession. He recounted the factors thatencouraged AKU to concentrate on education of teachers,school heads and policymakers.

A large number of educationists from Pakistan, India, EastAfrica, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Malaysia, Poland, UK, US andCanada participated in the conference. Three days ofdeliberations and discussions by national and internationalresearchers, academics and educationists led to severaloutcomes. Some of these included:

o Identification of areas and issues, such as language andculture in education, quality in higher education and specialeducation, etc, for research and dissemination at futureconferences;

o Launch of Pakistan Association of Research in Education( PA R E ) .

In-depth discussions by national and international scholars produced valuable outcomes.

AKU-IED

AKU-IED faculty has conducted 73 research

studies on school improvement and teacher

e d u c a t i o n .

The need to have easy access to authentic and conciseinformation about health care interventions has long beenrecognised among medical professionals as well as the generalpublic. With the rise of the Internet as an important source ofinformation today, the issues of availability and access toinformation have largely been resolved. At the same time,problems of credibility, quality, and the need to sift throughlarge amounts of information to find what is relevant haveemerged.

The Cochrane Collaboration is an international non-profitorganisation that promotes evidence-based medicine in clinicalpractice. It was established in 1993 to provide high-qualitysynthesised information about developments in health careacross a broad range of topics. Comprehensive informationrelated to preventive and clinical interventions is compiled,systematically analysed, and made readily available fordissemination via the Internet to various user groups includingconsumers, clinicians, policy makers, researchers, educators,students and others.

The main goal of joining the Cochrane Collaboration is toimprove decision-making about healthcare interventionsrelated to health problems faced by people in less developedcountries. Dr Anita Zaidi, Associate Professor, Department ofPaediatrics, has been coordinating activities of the AKUCochrane Group since October 2005. AKU Cochrane Grouphas wide representation from other clinical departments, andorganised the first Cochrane Collaboration Training Workshopon Protocol Development at the University in April 2006. Theworkshop was facilitated by the Research Office.

The objectives of the workshop were to train clinicalresearchers in Pakistan in formulating a research question in

their area of interest for which a systematic review of evidencewas needed, searching medical databases, critical appraisal ofmedical literature, and an introduction to Cochrane researchmethodology (protocol development and meta-analysis).

The event received enthusiastic participation of faculty andtrainees from all clinical departments at AKU. Otherinstitutions whose representatives participated includedCollege of Physicians and Surgeons' Research Training Unit;Pakistan Medical Research Council; National Institute ofChild Health, Karachi; Civil Hospital, Karachi; BaqaiUniversity and Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar. A K UCochrane Group plans to organise more training sessions andworkshops in the future.

Further information on the Cochrane Collaboration andCochrane Reviews are available at:

www.cochrane.org/docs/newcomersguide.htm. Online access

to the Cochrane Library and database at AKU is now available

at http://www.mrw.interscience.wiley.com/cochrane

Dr Prathap Tharyan, Chair of Psychiatry, Christian Medical College Vellore, and coordinator of the South Asian Cochrane Network was the main facilitator.

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The main goal of joining the Cochrane

Collaboration is to improve decision-

making about healthcare interventions

related to health problems faced by people

in less developed countries.

First Cochrane Collaboration Training Workshop

ISMC Discusses Muslim Historical NovelsHistory as Entertainment, as Identity or as Politics?

UPenn Professor Presents New Ways ofThinking About Historical Figures

The Faculty of Arts and Sciences held the first of itsOccasional Lecture Series in March. The speaker Dr NomanulHaq is a Visiting Professor of Near Eastern Languages andCivilisations at the University of Pennsylvania. His talk wasentitled: ‘The Contemporary Relevance of Razi: The Scienceof Medicine and Liberal Arts’.

Dr Haq introduced the audience to new ways of thinking abouthistorical figures and their contributions to our understandingof the world. In the case of Razi, Dr Haq pointed out that Razirejected the Artistotelian approach to knowledge, and insteadapproached medicine by gathering data through systematicclinical observation, laying the basis upon which medicine isstudied today. Razi also described diseases that he hadobserved, differentiating for the first time between descriptionsof small pox and measles.

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Razi rejected the Artistotelian approach to knowledge.

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MA in Muslim Cultures Attracts Students From Eight CountriesThe new MAin Muslim Cultures offered by AKU-ISMChas attracted a significant amount of interest. A largenumber of prospective students submitted applicationsfor places for the September 2006 start date. A full cohortis expected to join the programme as the Institute is

fortunate to be heavilyoversubscribed for theprogramme.

The MA, whichfocuses on the diversityof Muslim Cultures,will have the addedbenefit of hostingstudents from manyd i fferent countries andcultures. It has beenespecially exciting asthis programme hasattracted a diverse body of students. T h eClass of 2009 willcomprise of studentsfrom Canada, China,Indonesia, Iran,Pakistan, Tajikistan,Tunisia, and USA.

Exploring Muslim cultures and the experiences of Muslims,AKU Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations(ISMC)held its first cultural event in January 2006 on the historicalnovels of Jurji Zaydan: History as entertainment, as identity oras politics?

Thomas Philipp, Professor of Politics and ContemporaryHistory of the Near East and the Middle East, Friedrich-Alexander University, Erlangen-Nürnberg, spoke about thefamed Egyptian historical novelist and biographer Jurji Zaydan'swork (1861-1914), considered to be the pioneer of historicalnovels in the Arabic language.

The second event in the series The Novel Eye: Historical Novelsand Muslim Settings continued with leading Arab novelist andeditor of Cairo's Akhbar el-adab, Gamal al-Ghitani in May 2006.

Held jointly with the School of Oriental and African Studies(SOAS), University of London, the lecture was given in A r a b i cwith simultaneous English translation. The session included ashort reading by al-Ghitani from his acclaimed novel, ZayniBarakat (Penguin Books, 1998), followed by a discussion of hiswriting and philosophy - especially the notions of time andspace. The event concluded with a stimulating discussion. In theaudience were leading novelists and literary critics, members of

the Arab press and journalists from the BBC World Service andother leading networks.

Gamal al-Ghitani is a pioneer of innovation in Arabic storytelling.His singular style integrates classical historical writings andnarrative techniques into modern forms. He is the author ofseveral novels, including Zayni Barakat, which has captivated theimagination of a generation of readers and put the question ofhistory at the forefront of intellectual inquiry. Zayni Barakat wasfirst published in serial form by the independent weekly Rose El-Youssef between 1970-71. In1990, it became the first A r a b i cnovel to be published in English translation by Penguin.

This historical novel is set in early 17th century MamlukeCairo.It traces the career of Zayni Barakat ibn Mousa as Cairo'spuritanically moral and severe wali or governor, who employsseveral corps of spies and informers to rule the city. The authorhas used various narrative devices including diary extracts,police reports, legal decrees, first-person narratives andreligious discourses which together with oblique references tothe Cairo of Nasser, serve to give the novel the dimensions of apolitical and historical fable.

The next event in the series The Novel Eye: Historical Novelsand Muslim Settings will take place in November 2006.

Every day around the world, there are 10,000 deaths ofnewborn babies who have not yet completed four weeks oflife. This amounts to an annual four million deaths during theneonatal period, the time when an infant is most at risk.Although most research and funding for newborn deaths arefocused on high-income countries, virtually all (99%) neonataldeaths occur in the developing world.

In March 2005, AKU researcher Dr Anita Zaidi, AssociateProfessor of Paediatrics and Microbiology (MBBS '88),published a paper in the prestigious medical journal Lancetregarding health risks faced by newborn babies born inhospitals in developing countries.

The article became the subject of a BBC News reportheadlined ‘Developing World at Superbug Risk’ and alsoreceived coverage from Reuters International as well as globalnews networks such as MSNBC and ABC News from theUnited States. The startling finding was that unsanitarypractices during labour and delivery, as well as in after-birthcare, create an infection risk for the developing world's

newborns, that is up to 20 times greater than in developedcountries.

A key observation from the study was the alarming level ofantibiotic resistance in the developing world's newborn babynurseries. Dr Zaidi and colleagues estimated that 70 percent ofbacteria isolated from bloodstream infections in such nurseriesmay not be treatable by common antibiotics such as ampicillinand gentamicin, which are recommended for this purpose bythe World Health Organization. This work was conductedthrough a collaborative international effort in which Dr Zaidiled a team of paediatric infectious disease specialists fromHarvard Medical School and Mayo Clinic, USA. "Recognitionby the world's media is an important dimension of this work,"says Dr Zaidi, an AKU alumna and an active member of theUniversity’s child health research team. "It brings attention tothis problem so that solutions can be debated, and hopefullyacted upon."

Newborn health has been a key focus for paediatric research atAKU. Dr Zulfiqar Bhutta, Chairman of Paediatrics and aninternationally recognised child health researcher, has been

part of a global advocacy campaign devoted to highlightingthe problem of newborn health in developing countries. Heemphasises that 70% of newborn deaths can be preventedthrough 16 simple and cost-effective interventions, includingclean and skilled delivery by trained midwives, giving onlybreast milk to babies, and extra care for babies with low birthweight.

Much of this knowledge has been made available to the publicand health care workers through a series of prominent articlespublished in the Lancet Newborn Survival Series (March2005). These analytic commentaries, which Dr Bhutta has co-authored along with other international leaders in the field,define the scope of the problem and describe low cost buteffective solutions to save babies from dying soon after birth.

Dr Bhutta has now co-authored a follow-up paper in Lancet(May 2006) that details progress since the initial call to action."The most heartening thing is that the campaign has startedproducing results," he says. "Among other developments,leaders of WHO, UNICEF and World Bank have made publiccommitments to improving newborn health; UNICEF hasproduced a revised health and nutrition strategy recognisingthe importance of newborn survival; and private donors,primarily the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, haveapproved grants of US $60 million to advance survival ofnewborns in high mortality countries." The problem ofnewborn survival is vast and there is still much to do. It isencouraging to note, however, that AKU's child health expertshave been able to create a discernible impact.

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Professor Zulfiqar Bhutta, Chairman, Departmant of Paediatrics.

Newborn Deaths - A Global Problem and a Call for Action

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Dr Anita Zaidi, Associate Professor, Departmant of Paediatrics.

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Published by the Public Affairs Department, Aga Khan University, Stadium Road, P.O. Box 3500, Karachi-74800, Pakistan.Telephone: 493-0051, Fax: (92) 21-493-4294, email: public.affairs@aku.edu http://www.aku.edu Printed at Elite Publishers Limited, Karachi.

MEDICAL COLLEGE

The civilisations of the Muslim world from 800 to 1600A.D. included the Ottoman Empire and the courts ofBaghdad, Damascus and Cairo, as well as enlightenedrulers who promoted intellectual endeavours that creatednew knowledge. Although, modern Western civilisation hasbenefited from the contributions of the Islamic world, mostare unaware of the debt they owe to its great scholars,scientists and physicians.

Muslim architects designed buildings that appeared to defygravity. Mathematicians created algebra and algorithms thatcenturies later enabled the building of computers and thedevelopment of software. The men of medicine examinedthe human body, understood and documented how itworked, and found cures for diseases. When the othernations were afraid of ideas, the Islamic civilisationsthrived on them. When censors threatened to wipe outknowledge from past civilisations, Muslims kept theknowledge alive and passed it on to the others.

Following in this tradition, the aim of Aga Khan Universityis to develop the knowledge leaders of tomorrow. It has toachieve this aim in the context of accelerating pace ofchange globally, of geo-political and social dynamics thatthreaten to divide societies, and in a world exploding atonce with knowledge and ignorance, where the impact oftechnology can be empowering or isolating.

AKU draws upon the great traditions of Islam and otherreligions and cultures to prepare its students by teachingcritical thinking, problem solving and decision making,while inculcating moral reasoning, ethical behaviour andrespect for others. AKU’s vision is to be a powerful forcefor pluralism that promotes diverse thinking, intellectualopenness and increased understanding between people ofdifferent societies.

With campuses and programmes on three continents, AKUis a role model in the developing world for academic,research and service programmes in health and education.As a private University, it provides students access tohigher education of an international standard based solelyon merit, their potential for leadership and motivation toexcel. Its programmes and services are open to all,regardless of faith, creed, origin or gender.

The University is now embarking upon an expansion, interms of the geographies, disciplines and programmes, toextend its reach and impact. With the proposedundergraduate Faculty of Arts and Sciences and graduateschools in Pakistan, the planning and establishment of newcampuses in East Africa and the recent partnership for theFrench Medical Institute for Children in Kabul, as well asrelated programmes in Afghanistan, AKU is focused onearning its reputation as an international university. Itsstature will continue to be based on its uncompromisingadherence to merit, its quality of academic programmes,research and services, and its relevance and input to thedeveloping world.

In its short history, it has become a valued and trustedpartner of governments, universities and internationalagencies who share the University's strong belief in the

potential of human capital, ingenuity and enterprise tobuild communities and improve lives. It is establishing agrowing reputation for the quality and innovation of itsprogrammes, in its ability to undertake problem-basedresearch, and in its role as an agent of change in thedeveloping world.

Assuming the Presidency of AKU in May 2006, my focuswill be to build on its strong foundation to extend its reachand impact. Guided by the vision of the Chancellor, HisHighness the Aga Khan; the wisdom of the Board ofTrustees; dedication of the faculty, staff and students andthe continued support of well wishers and donors, AKUaspires to evolve into one of the world’s great universities.

In achieving this vision, Aga Khan University will drawinspiration from the great Muslim scholars and scientists ofh i s t o r y. It is committed to constructing societies andinstitutions that will build on the greatness of Muslimcivilisations and to developing educated, forward thinkingleaders whose actions will be based on compassion, ethicsand moral reasoning.

President Firoz Rasul’s Message