IRU in Pakistan

As part of its commitment to strengthening international partnerships, the IRU has been engaging with schools, colleges and government representatives in Pakistan since 2018.

The IRU regrets to inform our Pakistani partners that our Country Director, Sabeeh Qayyum, passed away unexpectedly in March 2023. Our Marketing and Media Advisor Bethany Keats, who worked closely with Sabeeh, has reflected on their relationship in an article published by the ABC.

We value our partnerships in Pakistan and we ask that you are patient with us as we navigate this transition period. Please contact us if you have any questions: secretariat@iru.edu.au 

IRU Pakistan Activities 2018-2023

The IRU Pakistan Project commenced in 2018 as an initiative of the IRU International Group to increase brand awareness of the IRU and IRU members in the Pakistan market, and to provide the IRU and its members with intelligence on that market. 

The COVID-19 pandemic seriously disrupted the IRU’s ability to engage with stakeholders, however the project still achieved significant outcomes including:

  • Established an IRU partnership with the National Business Education Accreditation Council (NBEAC).

  • Held a series of webinars with IRU members and stakeholders in Pakistan on a range of topics and to a variety of audiences including schools, academics, and university stakeholders.

  • Successfully engaged with schools in Pakistan to raise the profile of IRU members, including through a partnership with Initiate Learning to offer personal development to students.

  • Arranged meetings with Australian government officials in Pakistan about issues concerning the educational relationship between the two countries, including with the High Commissioner, Austrade, and the Department of Home Affairs.

  • Facilitated visits of member delegations to Pakistan, including arranging meetings with senior officials at leading Pakistani universities.

  • The project was able to facilitate formal connections between IRU members and universities in Pakistan, including through Memoranda of Understanding, Documents of Understanding, degree articulation agreements, and research partnerships.

Remembering Sabeeh Qayyum, Country Director – Pakistan

Sabeeh was an Australian Alumna, as well as an Australia Awards Scholarship holder and completed a Masters in Counseling from Monash University.

Her professional career spanned over twenty years, the majority of it working within the education sector of Pakistan, based in Lahore under various capacities such as Education Counselor (RMT Enterprise, Education Consultancy), Teacher (Bahauddin Zakariya University & Grace College of Business Studies), Manager Career Advising (Beaconhouse School System) and as Rector of a local Higher Education Institute (Ali Institute of Education).

It was clear that everyone who worked with Ms Qayyum appreciated her as a person as well as the role she was performing. She was passionate about education and building relationships between Australia ad Pakistan and the IRU received overwhelmingly positive feedback from stakeholders in both Pakistan and Australia about her work.