KATHMANDU: The Ministry of Education and Sports held discussions with vice-chancellors of federal universities and other stakeholders on Tuesday as part of preparations to draft bills to amend university laws.
The meeting, held at the ministry in Singha Durbar, focused on proposed amendments to existing university laws, university autonomy, good governance, academic and administrative reforms, and updating legal provisions in line with current needs.
Experts and stakeholders attending the discussion stressed the need for policy reforms to make higher education more quality-oriented, research-driven, productive and practical.
They called for provisions that would strengthen universities’ institutional capacity, improve academic standards and equip students with skills to compete in the job market.
National Planning Commission member Dr Sudan Jha said universities should focus on improving academic quality and producing knowledge. He stressed that universities should advance based on research and knowledge production.
Education and Sports Ministry Secretary Chudamani Paudel said the discussion was important for academic reform, building centres of excellence and formulating concrete policies for higher education.
He said the drafting process for the School Education Bill had already begun and suggestions had been received from all seven provinces. According to Paudel, the ministry is preparing to advance six education-related bills in the current fiscal year.
Education Minister’s Chief Adviser Shailendra Jha said policy provisions were needed to increase students’ interest in universities. He suggested addressing issues including the number of universities, transparency in scholarship distribution and their effectiveness through legislation.
University Grants Commission Chair Prof Dr Khadga Bahadur KC said the discussion was important for higher education policy reform and stressed that Nepal’s universities should be developed as research-oriented institutions.
He said universities should focus not only on teaching but also on producing knowledge.
Tribhuvan University Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Bhola Thapa called for the relevant laws to be introduced at the earliest to make university activities more effective and dynamic.
Vice-chancellors and representatives from Kathmandu University, Rajarshi Janak University, Far Western University, Mid-West University, Agriculture and Forestry University, Pokhara University, Purbanchal University, Nepal Sanskrit University and Lumbini Buddhist University also provided suggestions on higher education reforms and issues that should be incorporated into the amended laws.
Registrars, deans, professors, senior ministry officials, representatives of the National Planning Commission, policymakers and other stakeholders also participated in the discussion.
Ministry Joint Secretary Jayaram Adhikari said the discussion was organised to gather views and suggestions on necessary reforms to existing legal provisions governing universities and higher education.
The ministry said the meeting also discussed the current state of Nepal’s higher education sector, ways to improve academic quality, expand research and make higher education more effective and competitive.
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