Stressing the importance of advancements in information technology, Pakistan President Mamnoon Hussain has advised Pakistani students in Qatar to keep up with scientific and technological progressions and remain abreast of the changing world around them.
Speaking to the students of Pakistan Education Centre (PEC), one of the oldest and biggest community education institutions in Qatar, during his recently concluded visit, the president said education is the biggest source of both material and moral development.    
“Education is the biggest source of human resource development. Without giving our children education, we cannot expect them to make any contribution towards the development and progress of their country when they grow up,” said President Hussain while addressing a gathering of students and faculty members of the school.
He said he particularly told his planners to include a trip to the school in his itinerary as he wanted to meet the Pakistani students and encourage them. On his arrival, accompanied by Pakistani Ambassador Shahzad Ahmad, the president was received by PEC Principal Nargis Raza Otho.
The president was shown around the school including its renovated library, and the English language and resource room, where he interacted with the students. He also visited some classrooms of the school and had a candid interaction with the students. The president signed a visitors’ book and recorded his expressions.
Attired in traditional dresses, students of different grades from Kindergarten to seniors presented tableau to depict the school’s diverse character having 27 nationalities studying there.
“This school is like a flower in the desert, spreading its fragrance far and wide. I feel honoured to be here and to get to know the achievements of the students of this school. The way they are performing in the curricular and co-curricular is a matter of pride for us all,” said the president while addressing the audience.
Highlighting the importance of information technology education in today’s world, he said IT education has attained a central position in the world and therefore it was necessary for children to focus more on it.
Quoting an information technology expert, President Hussain said the advancements in the field of information technology were happening so fast that by 2030, computers might even replace doctors.
“We must prepare for those times ahead. Our every educational institution should give special importance to IT education so that our children do not lag behind children from other countries in this field,” said the president.
The president said he believes that the strength of any educational institution was its faculty. Only those who have knowledge can transfer it. The more knowledge they have the more they would transfer.
“I would urge the school to regularly train its teachers and its staff. They should either arrange teachers’ trainings at the school or send them abroad so that they gain more knowledge and remain abreast of the developments happening around the world,” he told the school management.
He especially appreciated Umar Shafiq, the student who recited verses from holy Qur’an to start the event. Touched by his recitation style, the president called him on the stage, shook his hand and congratulated the young boy for reciting the Qur’an “in the manner it should have been done.”
He said the purpose of his visit to the school was to meet the Pakistani students and get to know what and how the children living here think about their country and the rest of the world. “And how they plan to make their own country and the rest of the world more beautiful,” said Mamnoon Hussain.
He said change is constant. “It is inevitable. We should prepare ourselves for those changes so that we do not lag behind.”
Quoting a couplet by Pakistan’s national poet Allama Iqbal, the president told the students that change has always been happening at all times but at the pace it has been happening in the present era is unprecedented.
The world is shrinking and “maybe in another few years, it would completely shrink into your hands in the form of cell phones.”
Technology however, he said, is a two-edged sword. Its positive use can bring about individual and collective progress and its negative use can cause destruction. “It is important that you focus on its positive side so that you can serve this world better.”
“The idea of service of humanity and the world is connected to positive thinking and attitude. You may be wondering what exactly would be the definition of positive attitude and thinking. Let me give you a simple answer,” President Hussain addressed the students.
“If we become good Pakistanis first, it would mean we are morally on the right track. A good person is the one who works hard with sincerity and honour and devotes himself for the service of humanity. This is the only way that we can take to make this world more peaceful,” he added.
For doing this, he said, all our hopes are attached to our younger generation, and “I am hopeful that you would not disappoint us.”
He said he was happy to know that students passing out from PEC were going on to join Qatar’s armed forces and were serving in other institutions of the country. He further advised them that like a good Pakistani, they must obey and adhere to Qatar’s traditions, culture and law.
The president told students to not indulge in any unlawful activities and abstain from breaking people’s hearts here. Rather, with their conduct, he told the students, they should always try to further strengthen the brotherly relations between Pakistan and Qatar.
“The president of any country is the symbol of its unity. From my visit to the school, it should be evident how serious the present government in Pakistan is about education,” said the president. He hoped that his visit would have encouraged the students of PEC.
The president reiterated the importance of education for girls and their subsequent inclusion in the work force of Pakistan. He said he recently suggested to the Ministry of Education in Pakistan that only women should be appointed as teachers at the primary level.
“It would let more women get into the workforce and I think women make more caring teachers. The benefits would be manifold,” said President Hussain.
Pakistan Ambassador Shahzad Ahmad along with Principal Nargis Raza Otho presented a memento to the president at the conclusion of his visit.

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