In a significant move to strengthen international cooperation in education, Ms Kristin K Hawkins, the United States Consul General in Lahore, led a delegation from the US Consulate on an official visit to the Program Monitoring and Implementation Unit of the Punjab Education Sector Reforms Program (PMIU-PESRP). The visit focused on exploring opportunities for mutual collaboration and the exchange of best practices to enhance the quality of education in Punjab.
Punjab’s Minister for Education, Mr Rana Sikandar Hayat, welcomed the delegation and reaffirmed the provincial government’s commitment to leveraging technology and global partnerships for educational reform. He emphasized the vital role of international collaboration in addressing shared challenges and advancing learning outcomes.
During the visit, the delegation held a detailed meeting with Mr Muzammil Mehmood, Chairman of the Chief Minister’s Task Force, to discuss the scope of future cooperation between the Government of Punjab and the United States. The discussions centered on initiatives aimed at innovation, institutional development, and capacity building in the education sector.
The delegation also received a comprehensive briefing on Punjab’s education reform agenda and the transformative work being undertaken by PMIU-PESRP. A visit to the School Education Department’s modern Data Center provided the delegation with insights into how the province is using data-driven governance and real-time monitoring to improve service delivery in public schools.
Also present on the occasion were Mr Khalid Nazir Wattoo, Secretary of the School Education Department, and Mr Imtiaz Shahid Gondal, Programme Director of PMIU-PESRP. Both officials highlighted Punjab’s strategic focus on digital tools, analytics, and evidence-based decision-making to drive meaningful change in the education system.
The visit marked an important milestone in Punjab’s efforts to forge long-term educational partnerships with the United States, with promising prospects for collaboration in teacher training, digital learning, and policy innovation.
