POST 18TH AMENDMENT SCENARIO AND HIGHER EDUCATION IN PAKISTAN: A CASE STUDY OF KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA

Abstract

The historic 18th Constitutional Amendment, passed in 2010, transformed Pakistan's federal structure from a more centralized federalism to a decentralized participatory federal system. Through this amendment, along with other subjects, education, including higher education, was devolved to the provinces. This study examines the new arrangements regarding higher education in Pakistan after the 18th Amendment, focusing on a case study of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to understand the applications of the 18th Amendment with all its pros and cons. How far the devolution process is successful in terms of devolution of higher education, the issues between the federal government and provinces relating to the distribution of resources and powers, hurdles in the creation of the provincial Higher Education Commission (HEC), and more importantly, the resource distribution of the federal government for higher education at the provincial level, are some of the questions that have been thoroughly explored in this study. For collecting the relevant data, the researcher relied on primary data from semi-structured interviews, thereby using the purposive sample technique. Experts in administration and academia were selected through the snowball technique, and their interviews were properly and ethically audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed` to get the major themes of the study. The study finds that the issues of financial and administrative devolution have not materialized in true letter and spirit. The study shows that the establishment of a provincial HEC with proper financial and administrative autonomy is mandatory for elevating provincial higher education. Keywords: Federalism, 18th Constitutional Amendment, Provincial Higher Education Commission, Khyber