The Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ICCI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with National University of Technology (NUTECH), Islamabad to promote academia-industry linkages and produce demand-driven graduates for the industry. Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry and Dr. Syed Adnan Qasim, Registrar, National University of Technology signed the MoU in a ceremony held at NUTECH, Islamabad. Fatma Azim, Senior Vice President ICCI, Mian Akram Farid, Chairman ICCI Founder Group, Engr. Khalid Asghar, Rector, NUTECH and others were present at the occasion.
  By signing MoU, ICCI and NUTECH have agreed to work jointly for promoting applied research in academia and indigenous industrial knowledge, new technologies & innovations in industries in order to help the industrial sector in producing imports substitutions, value-addition of products and exports enhancement. Both institutions will establish long-term and sustainable partnerships to find innovative and cost effective solutions to industrial problems.  The NUTECH with the support of ICCI will produce a highly capable and efficient industrial workforce by providing them international quality skills education and indigenously developed competency based training that would help in enhancing industrial efficiency and productivity. ICCI and NUTECH will also create different collaborative forums besides creating joint working groups to work on various initiatives including periodic review of curriculum and industrial research works, scrutiny of NUTECH industry projects and apprenticeship programs etc. They will work jointly to identify the required technical, vocational skills and competency standards for the local industry, locate industrial processes and systems that need technology and skills upgradation, identify research & development projects for NUTECH for value addition of industrial products.
  Speaking at the occasion, Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan, President ICCI said that the advanced countries have achieved phenomenal economic growth by promoting strong academia-industry linkages and there is a great need to replicate this model in Pakistan for promoting speedy industrialization.  He said that linkages between universities and industries in Pakistan can play an important role in finding out optimum solutions of industrial problems and making progress towards sustainable economic growth of the country. He hoped that the MoU inked between ICCI and NUTECH is a right move in that direction and would go a long way in developing academia-industry collaborations.
  Engr. Khalid Asghar, Rector, NUTECH expressing his views thanked ICCI for signing MoU of cooperation that would start a new phase of university-industry collaborations in the region and help in promoting the industrial and economic interests of Pakistan. He was optimistic that the close collaboration between ICCI and NUTECH would be helpful in promoting advancement of knowledge, science, technology and skills through exchange of ideas, mutually organized and supported science, technology and industry exhibitions, workshops, seminars, symposia, research conferences, industry internships and trainings etc. He said that NUTECH and ICCI will also support each other to utilize their training facilities for engineering, technology and skills education programs.