Distinguished leaders from Asia, Africa, Europe and North America assembled this week at Aga Khan University’s (AKU) Stadium Road campus as the University’s Board of Trustees met in Karachi for the first time since the start of the pandemic. The presence of Princess Zahra Aga Khan and other globally eminent leaders from academia, health care, finance and law strikes a hopeful note and signals AKU’s unshakeable commitment to Pakistan.
The 13 members of AKU’s Board of Trustees are appointed by AKU’s Chancellor, His Highness the Aga Khan. They include current and former leaders of institutions such as Habib Bank, Standard Chartered, Columbia University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Pennsylvania, Wake Forest University, the University of Calgary, and the Supreme Court of Tanzania.
“Throughout its four-decade journey, the vigilance, foresight and integrity of the Board of Trustees has been one of the University’s most valuable assets,” President Sulaiman Shahabuddin said. “The wise counsel and strategic guidance they have provided have enabled AKU to navigate changes in higher education, health care, technology, politics, the economy, and more. They have shaped its evolution and made AKU the university it is today.”
In Pakistan, AKU has awarded 14,500 diplomas and degrees in the health care and educational development sectors. These will be accompanied soon by degrees from the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, which AKU opened earlier this year. The University’s Hospital cares for 1.4 million patients annually and provides US$ 21.1 million (PKR 4.3 billion) in patient welfare annually to make world-class care – including surgeries and other advanced procedures and diagnostics – available to low-income patients. During last year’s floods, it established medical camps in flood-affected communities across Pakistan and provided free basic health services to more than 400,000 people.
Representatives of the Government of Sindh, diplomats, AKU donors and partners and representatives of Pakistan’s business and legal communities joined AKU’s senior leadership at a dinner Thursday evening in honour of the Trustees. Princess Zahra Aga Khan paid tribute to the contributions of her fellow Board members and the University’s supporters and senior leaders, thanking them on behalf of His Highness the Aga Khan for “fueling AKU’s ascent to new heights of distinction and impact.”
“AKU’s success is above all due to the vision and generosity of His Highness the Aga Khan,” said Chairman of the Board of Trustees Zakir Mahmood. “It is an honour for the Board to have the opportunity to help to fulfill that vision alongside the diverse members of the AKU community around the world.”
“As AKU celebrates its 40th anniversary, it possesses a greater capacity for impact in a greater number of fields and geographies than ever before,” Trustee Naguib Kheraj said. “Our goal is to ensure that it continues to thrive and to respond to the challenges faced by the people it serves in an era of accelerating change and significant uncertainty.”
“As a nursing scholar and leader, it has been deeply satisfying to witness and contribute to the evolution of AKU’s School of Nursing and Midwifery,” said Trustee Afaf Meleis. “Its contribution to nursing in Pakistan and beyond is only one element of the University’s impact, but it is a powerful demonstration of what it can achieve.”
Princess Zahra offered a preview of a new report by a commission of globally eminent leaders from academia and other fields handpicked by His Highness the Aga Khan to develop recommendations that can guide AKU’s evolution in the years ahead. She noted the Commissioners’ optimism that AKU “will continue to thrive and contribute to a more peaceful, prosperous, and pluralist world in the decades ahead.” Echoing that optimism, she said: “With the continued guidance of its Chancellor, the wise oversight of its Trustees, the deft management of its senior leaders, and the generous support of its friends, AKU will continue to stand as a creative source of education and enlightenment in the decades ahead.”
