The United States Government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), is partnering with the Pakistani government to launch a $19 million, five-year program to improve Pakistan’s higher education system and increase the employability of university graduates. This is another example of the breadth of cooperation between the United States and Pakistan as we celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations.

The program will integrate the best practices in teaching, research, governance, and sustainability to benefit 15 public Pakistani universities across the country, including five women’s universities. Through this program, universities will provide students with research opportunities, soft-skills training, and support services such as career counseling. Through collaboration with industry, the program will help align academic preparation with workforce needs.

“USAID is proud to collaborate with the Higher Education Commission on this program,” said USAID Mission Director Julie A. Koenen. “The Higher Education System Strengthening Activity (HESSA) will build stronger Pakistani universities that offer the education and research experiences students need to be more employable in the local market. This will prepare talented young people with the required skills to find jobs and launch their careers. It will also support the needs of industry, increase hiring and productivity, and stimulate further economic growth.”

HEC Chairman Dr. Tariq Banuri said, “HESSA is an innovative initiative expected to make notable contributions towards improving the institutional and technical capacities of its partner universities which shall impact the quality of our future scholars. I am confident that the nexus of U.S. universities with HESSA-partner higher education institutions will result in policy reforms that will benefit all universities in Pakistan.”

For more information on USAID/Pakistan’s support for the education sector, visit https://www.usaid.gov/pakistan/education“The United States looks forward to advancing our partnership with Pakistan to build a clean, efficient, and reliable electricity generation sector, laying a foundation for sustainable and inclusive growth,” said USAID Mission Director Julie A. Koenen at the launch ceremony. “Through this new initiative, USAID will partner with the Government of Pakistan to support the transition to a truly competitive wholesale power market. This will increase private sector participation in an open and transparent manner and support our shared energy reform goals,” she added.



Mr. Shah Jahan Mirza, Managing Director of the Private Power Infrastructure Board, praised USAID for its strong partnership, innovation, and sustained cooperation in supporting Pakistan’s transition to clean energy and said he looks forward to continuing the partnership to improve Pakistan’s power sector performance.



Over the last 75 years, the U.S.-Pakistan partnership has improved Pakistani lives by building dams and transmission lines, responding to humanitarian emergencies, and combatting shared challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and water vulnerabilities.


To expand Pakistan’s energy supply, the United States and Pakistan have built three dams– Gomal Zam dam in South Waziristan, Satpara dam in Gilgit Baltistan, and Golen Gol dam in Chitral, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, adding 143 megawatts of electricity to the national grid – and together have rehabilitated the Mangla and Tarbela dams and three thermal power plants, and connected more than 860 megawatts of commercially-funded wind and solar projects to the national grid.



For more information about USAID’s Energy programs, please visit: https://www.usaid.gov/pakistan/energy

“The United States looks forward to advancing our partnership with Pakistan to build a clean, efficient, and reliable electricity generation sector, laying a foundation for sustainable and inclusive growth,” said USAID Mission Director Julie A. Koenen at the launch ceremony. “Through this new initiative, USAID will partner with the Government of Pakistan to support the transition to a truly competitive wholesale power market. This will increase private sector participation in an open and transparent manner and support our shared energy reform goals,” she added.

Mr. Shah Jahan Mirza, Managing Director of the Private Power Infrastructure Board, praised USAID for its strong partnership, innovation, and sustained cooperation in supporting Pakistan’s transition to clean energy and said he looks forward to continuing the partnership to improve Pakistan’s power sector performance.

Over the last 75 years, the U.S.-Pakistan partnership has improved Pakistani lives by building dams and transmission lines, responding to humanitarian emergencies, and combatting shared challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and water vulnerabilities.

To expand Pakistan’s energy supply, the United States and Pakistan have built three dams– Gomal Zam dam in South Waziristan, Satpara dam in Gilgit Baltistan, and Golen Gol dam in Chitral, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, adding 143 megawatts of electricity to the national grid – and together have rehabilitated the Mangla and Tarbela dams and three thermal power plants, and connected more than 860 megawatts of commercially-funded wind and solar projects to the national grid.

For more information about USAID’s Energy programs, please visit: https://www.usaid.gov/pakistan/energy