Seminar aims to connect HEI with public, private sectors

MUSCAT: Sultan Qaboos University (SQU), represented by Office of the SQU Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Postgraduate Studies and Scientific Research, organised a seminar at Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre on Sunday under the theme “Linking Higher Education Institutions (HEI) in the Sultanate with Public and Private Sectors”.

The event was opened under the auspices of Shaikh Abdullah bin Nasser al Bakri, Minister of Manpower, in the presence of Dr Rawya bint Saud al Busaidiya, Minister of Higher Education and Dr Ali bin Saud al Bimani, SQU Vice-Chancellor, at the new Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The minister congratulated SQU for bringing together academia, the industry, and the private and public sector under one umbrella in order to facilitate increased interaction among them. He hoped that the activity would bring positive outcomes to the country.

The chief guest also opened the exhibition held on the sidelines of the event.

It included several corners displaying research works carried out by nine university colleges and ten research centres from SQU and some private universities and colleges.

The main aim of the event is to strengthen cooperation between education institutions across the Sultanate and organisations in the public and private sectors. In this way, it is envisaged that the event will contribute to Oman’s efforts to achieve comprehensive and sustainable development and social and economic development.

The event provides opportunities to highlight the roles of different institutions in contributing to economic development, social welfare and youth development. It offers an excellent opportunity for organisations to demonstrate their various programmes, skills and abilities, research and scientific capabilities, while highlighting how these contribute to economic development and diversification. Through their involvement in the event, participating organisations seek to build ties of understanding and cooperation, thereby helping strengthen the Sultanate’s social and economic foundation.

In doing so, “Linking Higher Education Institutions (HEI) in the Sultanate with Public and Private Sectors” provides a supportive environment for exploring ways in which closer cooperation between the various stakeholders of strategic sectors can be achieved to contribute to the nation’s development goals.

This interaction and networking occur in an environment in which members of the public can witness first hand both the contribution that organisations across the private and public sectors make to national development and the potential benefits of greater institutional cooperation.

This will help build public confidence in the capabilities of academic, governmental and industrial institutions to effectively identify and meet the needs of Oman and its people.

Academics from SQU and other higher education institutions across Oman and representatives from private and public sector institutions are attending the event.

The event is expected to attract undergraduate and postgraduate students from SQU and other higher education institutions, school students especially those in grades 10-12, SQU graduates, parents, business people, decision makers and all those who are interested in efforts being made across sectors to help Oman continue its impressive strides towards continued social and economic development.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Rahma bint Ibrahim al Mahrooqi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Postgraduate Studies and Research at Sultan Qaboos University, said that there is a need for continuous interaction among higher educational institutions, the labour market and the government agencies.

“This will help to maximise the benefits of the resources of different sectors so that all parties cooperate in finding solutions to their challenges. The labour market can benefit from the abilities and capabilities of various higher educational institutions that feature diverse research capabilities and advanced laboratories that offer a variety of services and graduate programmes.

“The higher educational institutions qualify the cadres and acquire them the latest knowledge and skills that enable them to continue in the development process to meet the needs of the global market, to enhance the competitiveness of the domestic market, and to make them more flexible to any shocks and external changes. Many countries of the world have realised the social and economic benefits to society by maintaining close ties between academic, industry and government sectors. These links can make these countries at the front lines of science and knowledge, as these ties contribute to the development of products and innovations that solve the problems and challenges that arise because of the unstable conditions and continuous change in the world around us,” Dr Al Mahrooqi said.

In the opening ceremony, Prof Siddharth Jabade, from the Intellectual Property Rights Facilitation Centre, Vishwakarma Institute of Technology, Pune, India, gave a talk on “Enhancing National Innovation Capacity through Linkages of Educational Institutions, Public and Private Sectors”.

He said that in this digitally everexpanding flat knowledge centric world, increasing innovation capacity for the socio-economic prosperity of a country is of paramount importance. The linking of the educational institutes, public and private sector plays a vital role to this effect.

“The educational institutes are wellsprings of knowledge and play significant role in creating a human capital. The effective links between educational institutes, public and private sector enable conversion of this knowledge into the capital of applied knowledge in the form of workable technological innovations that would lead to improved inclusive innovation capacity, productivity and competitiveness of the country,” he said. Prof Jabade’s talk comprised of various approaches of these linkages along with the best practices followed in the world.