KARACHI: Bilquis & Abdul Razak Dawood (BARD) Foundation has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology (GIKI) to establish a DESCON Endowment Fund.

This fund will be available to both male and female students from underprivileged backgrounds enrolling in GIK Institute from September 2022.

The MoU signing ceremony was graced by Chairman, Board of Governors BARD Foundation Abdul Razak Dawood, along with other BoG members Faisal Dawood and Farooq Nazir. GIK Institute was represented by its Rector Professor Dr. Fazal Ahmad Khalid (SI), Pro-Rector (Academic) Prof. Dr. Wasim Ahmed Khan, the Dean of Mechanical Engineering Faculty Dr. Khalid Rahman and Director Finance Shahid Farooq.

“At BARD and Descon, we firmly believe that industry-academia collaboration enhances knowledge, innovation and plays an integral part in the economic growth of developing countries. The objective of our endowment funds is to empower students from underprivileged backgrounds to acquire the right set of technical skills and knowledge so their talent is channelized in the right direction,” said Abdul Razak Dawood.

Experts believe that universities create knowledge and unless that knowledge is not based on the industrial need, it is of no use. This is why BARD Foundation and Descon’s philanthropic initiatives and their efforts toward academic enrichment have been appreciated by key stakeholders. BARD Foundation is a human-development initiative, founded by the renowned industrialist, Abdul Razak Dawood and his philanthropist wife, Ms. Bilquis Dawood.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022