Islamabad: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Prof. Ahsan Iqbal, chaired the 6th meeting of the Task Force on Pay Scale Reform aimed at attracting and retaining top talent in Pakistan's higher education sector.

The meeting reviewed progress on proposals to modernize the pay structure of public universities, making it more competitive and aligned with international benchmarks while ensuring sustainability.

Senior officials from the Higher Education Commission (HEC), Ministry of Planning, provincial higher education and finance departments, and other stakeholders participated in the meeting.

The HEC presented key observations on the challenges faced by universities, including financial constraints and difficulty retaining qualified faculty due to uncompetitive salaries.

The Minister reiterated the Task Force's mandate to recommend a sustainable, market-aligned pay model to improve the quality of education, strengthen research, and attract world-class academic professionals.

The committee members were tasked with exploring alternative revenue streams-such as public-private partnerships (PPPs) and auxiliary enterprises-by leveraging institutional assets in accordance with global and regional best practices within the academic sector.

He directed the HEC to prepare a comprehensive report identifying gaps in the current system, faculty turnover trends, and actionable recommendations for restructuring the pay scales in line with national priorities and fiscal realities.