Muslim scientists awarded 2009 TWAS prize for building scientific institutions

Atta-ur-Rahman, FRS, Former Minister of Science & Technology, Minister of Education  and Chairman, Higher Education Commission, has been awarded  TWAS (Academy of Sciences for the Developing World, Trieste, Italy) Prize for building scientific institutions for 2009. 

This highly competitive Prize is given only to one eminent scientist from the developing world who has made the most important contributions towards the development of scientific institutions.  The prize was given in recognition of revolutionary developments in the higher education and science sectors in Pakistan which are admired the world over. These include the establishment of 51 new universities and degree awarding institutes which led to a tripling of the enrolment of university students from 135,000 to 400,000 in a 5 year period, strengthening of research institutions which led to a 600% increase in research output, initiating a huge faculty development programme under which 4,000 students have been sent to top foreign universities for PhD level studies, establishing one of the best digital libraries in the world which provides free nation-wide access to 25,000 international journals  and 45,000 text books to every student in all public sector universities and placing  Pakistan<$#$>s first educational satellite  in space (Paksat1). Atta was also responsible for building the finest research centre in the region----the  International Center for Chemical & Biological Sciences, University of Karachi which has trained 120 German students during the last 10 years.

 
Atta-ur-Rahman was conferred the highest Civil Award of the Government of Austria in 2007 for building an outstanding programme in higher education, science and engineering in Pakistan which is regarded as a model for the developing world. He is the most decorated scientist of the country having been conferred four civil awards by successive governments, including the highest national award, Nishan-I-Imtiaz. He is also the only scientist from the Muslim world to have been elected as Fellow of the prestigious Royal Society (London) in recognition of researches carried out within a Islamic country. Atta-ur-Rahman is heading a Committee of the 57 Ministers of Science and Technology of the 57 OIC member states (COMSTECH).