The Aga Khan University is a “National Asset for Pakistan” Aga Khan University President Sulaiman Shahabuddin received a warm reception in Toronto as he shared the impact the University is having on health and education in Pakistan with members of the Pakistani diaspora brought together by Feroz Jessani of the Jessani family.
A crowd of 160 people mostly from the business community as well as seasoned professionals listened intently to President Shahabuddin as he discussed AKU’s vision and impact in Pakistan. Born, raised and educated in Pakistan, President Shahabuddin became the University’s third President last year.
The Aga Khan University is now an international institution with campuses in six countries in Asia, Africa and the UK. It was originally chartered in Pakistan, where it still has its largest presence and impact. President Shahabuddin called AKU “a national asset for Pakistan,” noting that it has been ranked one of the top 500 universities in the world, one of the top 100 universities in Asia and one of the top 20 universities in the world in public health.
“AKU is not only improving people’s lives in Pakistan, it is burnishing the image of Pakistan abroad,” President Shahabuddin said. “Renowned institutions in Canada respect its quality and achievements, which is why they have partnered with us and supported our development so generously.”
AKU operates four hospitals as well as almost 290 outreach clinics across Pakistan. Together, they served 1.3 million patients last year. Thanks to the University’s patient welfare programme, which is supported by gifts from generous donors, even the poorest patients are able to receive care at AKU health facilities. In fact, one in 10 patients at the Aga Khan University Hospital earns less than $2 per day.
Students at AKU also benefit from the generosity of donors: 86 percent of AKU students receive financial assistance or pay no tuition in exchange for working at AKU after graduation at market salaries. To date, nearly 14,000 individuals – two-thirds of whom are women – have graduated from the University in Pakistan. The majority of AKU graduates are working and living in Pakistan, and they are helping to improve the quality of health and education for the public. For example, 80 percent of nursing schools with recognized degree programmes are led by alumni of the University’s School of Nursing and Midwifery.
President Shahabuddin pointed to AKU’s contributions to the fight against the pandemic, and to the national effort to aid victims of the unprecedented flooding that has devastated Pakistan.
During the pandemic, AKU has provided life-saving care to thousands of COVID-19 patients, vaccinated tens of thousands, trained government health care providers, advised government officials and helped to assess the safety of a COVID-19 vaccine that was widely used in Pakistan. In the aftermath of the recent floods, AKU established health camps in 42 districts that provided free health care to almost 400,000 people.
Research at AKU is addressing pressing challenges facing Pakistan. President Shahabuddin noted that last month long-time AKU faculty member Dr Zulfiqar Bhutta received the Canada Gairdner Global Health Award in Toronto for his research, which has focused on improving the health of women and children in low-income communities in Pakistan. The Canada Gairdner Awards are among the most prestigious awards in the health sciences globally. AKU’s partnerships with Canadian universities have resulted in more than 200 Canadian students completing internships at AKU and its fellow agencies of the Aga Khan Development Network.
It is an incredible honour for me to serve as president of AKU,” President Shahabuddin said. “Every day, I see the impact it is having on the lives of our fellow Pakistanis.
