The World Bank has begun a five-day Implementation Completion Mission in Islamabad to review the Higher Education Development in Pakistan (HEDP), the USD 400 million programme implemented by the Higher Education Commission since 2019. The mission will assess achievements, challenges and lessons learnt as the project moves toward formal closure.
HEC hosted the mission where divisional heads and HEDP component leads attended an overview presentation outlining key achievements, implementation progress and strategic directions across project components. Chairman HEC Mr. Nadeem Mahbub welcomed the delegation and emphasised HEDP’s transformative impact on higher education governance, digitalisation and quality enhancement while discussing the roadmap for closure and sustainability of interventions.
Executive Director Engr. Dr. M. Mazhar Saeed extended a warm welcome to the World Bank team led by Senior Economist and Task Team Leader Ms. Inga Afanasieva, accompanied by Senior Education Specialist Ms. Ryoko Tomita and Consultant Ms. Mashal Yousaf, and commended the Bank’s technical support throughout implementation. HEC acknowledged the dedication of its staff and HEDP teams in meeting project objectives and strengthening Pakistan’s higher education ecosystem.
Over the course of the mission, the HEC-HEDP team led by Project Coordinator HEDP Syed Naveed Hussain Shah will deliver detailed presentations on each component, emphasising validated results, implementation progress and sustainability plans beyond project completion. The review will document lessons learned and best practices to inform future higher education initiatives in Pakistan.
The mission will evaluate the long-term viability of HEDP interventions and outline next steps to sustain their impact, following World Bank procedures for the Implementation Completion and Results Report. Consultative meetings with the Economic Affairs Division are scheduled to finalise closure-related activities and ensure a durable handover of the project’s gains.
