Keeping in view the increasing access to scientific literature for institutions in Pakistan, the Higher Education Commission (HEC) has announced to launch the National Digital Library programme.
To achieve the objective, the HEC has secured inclusion in the Program for Enhancement of Research Information (PERI) of the International Network for Scientific Publications (INASP).
To launch the program, the HEC decided to conduct a series of workshops. In this connection, the first of these has been started on Tuesday at HEC Headquarters, Islamabad in co-operation with INASP professionals, who will train Master Trainers on the use of the digital library.
While inaugurating the workshop, Professor Dr Sohail H. Naqvi, Member, Human Resources Development (HRD) HEC, stated that this is a beginning of an era, which is being introduced to our institutions of higher learning for the first time.
And this should be considered as an historical day for higher education sector in Pakistan.
He further stated that this workshop would not only provide the participants with an understanding of what the PERI program is and what resources are available through it but also would provide them detailed training and information on how to use the electronic information resources available through the program.
This program aims to support capacity building in the research sector in developing and transitional countries by strengthening the production, access and dissemination of information and knowledge.
The main objective of the project include not only to provide a proper building for the University Library but also to facilitate over sixteen hundred undergraduate and postgraduate students for academic & research pursuits.
The approval of the project costing about Rs 35.0 million has been made in HEC's Departmental Development Working Party (DDWP) meeting held recently at HEC campus.
The HEC has received numerous requests from universities in Pakistan for specific journal titles to be included in the library, and would endeavour to include as many of these as possible to the library resource.
Through the inclusion of Pakistan in this program, public sector universities, colleges, research instates and organisations would be able to gain access to over 11,600 peer-reviewed full-text online international academic journals from some of the world's top publishing houses.
Meanwhile, the Higher Education Commission (HEC) has decided to strengthen the Central Library of University of Engineering and Technology, Taxila.
Further more the HEC is conducting further negotiations in collaboration with INASP to secure participation from additional publishing houses, and will strive to continually enhance the size and scope of the library.
Eligibility for access to the information resource as prescribed by the HEC would be exclusively for the public and private sector university departments and libraries, non-profit research institutes and professional bodies, organisations, higher education institutes, higher education colleges, schools, polytechnics, teaching hospitals, indigenous non-governmental organisation (NGO's), civil society organisations, health professionals, researchers and agricultural extension workers working within remote areas and any other eligible organisation authorised by the HEC.
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