Ram Hari Silwal, General Secretary Candidate
Ram Hari Silwal, Principal of Himalaya School/College, is a dynamic and visionary leader. Having been involved in dozens of social organizations, he has earned good knowledge and experience of flawless organizational stewardship. During his tenure as President of HISSAN Kathmandu before and Central Secretary now, his convincing administrative and communication skills prove that he is the most eligible candidate for the post of General Secretary of Central HISSAN.
Mr. Silwal shares his perspectives of the current situation of HISSAN, its ongoing national convention, strategic planning and foreseen destination which will surely bring a paradigm shift in the education sphere in Nepal. Excerpts:
The 8th National Convention of HISSAN is going to be held on 25 and 26th Chaitra, 2078. Could you please give a brief account of the convention?
The 8th National Convention of HISSAN is going has been scheduled for Chaitra 25th and 26th at Park Village Resort, Budhanilkantha, Kathmandu. The first day of the convention will mark a conference on education along with panel discussions. The objective of this conference is to discuss the on-going issues of all private institutions and seek solutions among the experts from different sectors including the Education Minister of Nepal Government. It is also expected that such discussions will find gateways to most problems as well as prepare a road map to move ahead in consensus.
The conference will be attended by representatives of political parties, government, HISSAN, freelance intellectuals and university professors who will be presenting their papers and exchange their opinions owing to private and public education. The Rt. Honorable President, Bidhya Devi Bhandari will grace the program as Chief Guest.
It is believed that the 2nd day of the convention will witness the selection of a new executive committee unanimously for the upcoming tenure.
In your view, what should be the incoming leaders like?
The urgent need of Nepal is to enhance education with skills and culture. We need a paradigm shift in the education system by linking it with IT, professionalism and life-changing skills along with ethics to fulfill the requisites of the 21st century. Similarly, there are several issues and concerns about private education which are to be solved immediately. So, the incoming leaders should be able to address all these issues. Similarly, s/he should possess knowledge, vision and mission to herald phenomenal transformation in education delivery and to coalesce the international practices into Nepalese education policies. S/he should also be familiar with the Government education policy and international modality. Besides, the senior-most leader should possess the quality of tolerance and pledge equitable acknowledgment to all member schools.
And we are proud to say that HISSAN has such leaders who can bring major breakthroughs in the academic sector. We will elect robust leaders who play a vital role in strengthening HISSAN’s administration and academic spheres.
The Education Act and Policy of the government has defined school education up to grade 12. How will HISSAN move ahead in such a changing situation?
The revised statute of HISSAN has defined its area from ten-plus-two to university level. And our focus is to ensure quality education through technological development and to impart pro-active education. The national and international scenarios have vividly shown the need of IT education in connection with global employment. So, HISSAN is fully committed to imparting education which help in generating skills, knowledge and ethics.
It is said that HISSAN has expanded its area but the central committee leaders want to establish HISSAN as a club of a privileged few. Will that be the status of HISSAN in the future?
I’m not sure about such false discourse, but I think it’s a criticism to belittle our tailored confidence. In fact, HISSAN has been working to cover a wide range of programs from technical and vocational education to general education, Information technology to science and technology and so on, starting from ten-plus-two level to university level. In addition, it has been working to bring all the like-minded organizations to the framework of umbrella organization to establish a federation since there are all kinds of colleges—small, medium and large— under the guardianship of HISSAN. In this regard, our mission is to develop entire education system to bring a paradigm shift.
To what extent do you believe that National Convention will witness unanimous selection of the President and the Executive Committee?
The National Education Convention is going to be held on 25th and 26th Chaitra, 2078. The first day session comprises educational dialogues among the experts from various sectors. A session has been allocated for paper presentation from the experts and representatives of three diverse fields— private sector, government sector and public sector. Similarly, a series of panel discussions facilitated by industrialists, politicians, educationists and bureaucrats will surely pull the attention of policy makers and oblige them to consider revising suppressive policies on private education sector.
In other words, the prime objective of the conference is to convene all the stakeholders in one forum and set a concrete road map of education ensuring the role of government, private sector, industrial enterprises, education experts and so on and to know the perspectives of the government and political parties regarding private education sector. On the second day, all the delegates and convention participants including our leaders will share their views on preparing policies and strategies in choosing incoming leaders.
It is the need of today to elect the senior-most leader and executive members unanimously. The national convention of PABSON, NPABSON and the political parties have set an example of consensual agreement to unanimous leadership. So, HISSAN should also agree to electing unanimous leadership. In case of the failure of unanimity, a democratic exercise is an alternative to settle the pandemonium.
At the 8th National Convention, you are willing to claim the designation of General Secretary. What are the reasons for such affirmation?
This is a natural claim. I had been elected the Secretary at the 7th National Convention. And who doesn’t have an interest in developing the leadership finesse? I have been grooming my leadership in HISSAN for a long time. I have been given this designation since my tenure as president of HISSAN-Kathmandu has already been successful. I believe in new commitments and exciting strategic planning of the incoming leaders to bring major breakthroughs in the academic sector. If we accept the continued tenure of the same committee, what is the value of conducting convention and spending such a huge amount of money?
What suggestions would you like to convey to the HISSAN associates and the delegates attending the convention?
I would like to convey my message to all the member colleges that HISSAN is our guardian organization. If we strengthen it, it ensures our investment security in private education sector. Undoubtedly, the existence of private education depends on the existence of HISSAN since it acknowledges the existence and aspirations of all the institutions despite their size and financial status. A national convention is a grand ceremony for all the HISSAN members. So, I request all the participating delegates to show their agile gesture in the convention. Let’s play a decisive role in choosing unanimous leaders who can lead the private education sector and negotiate with the government and the stakeholders to bring academic reforms.
