INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION SUMMIT 2026
From Evidence to Action
From Evidence to Action: Advancing Education Policy and Practice in Pakistan
Join us for the DARE-RC International Education Summit 2026, taking place on 31 October–1 November 2026 at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Lahore, Pakistan.
The 2026 Summit signals a key shift from evidence dissemination to action: consolidating DARE-RC evidence, drawing out cross-cutting lessons, and identifying priorities for policy reform, scaling, and future research.
Designed for researchers, policymakers, practitioners, funders, and education leaders, the Summit will focus on one central question: how can evidence drive inclusive and resilient education reform in Pakistan?
The Summit will focus on three priorities:
Synthesis: what has DARE-RC evidence taught us?
Influence: where has evidence shaped policy and practice?
Action: what should be prioritised next?
The Summit will help turn evidence into priorities, partnerships, and practical next steps for education reform.
DARE-RC is Pakistan’s largest education research programme, generating rigorous, actionable evidence to improve education policy and practice.
DARE’s 44 research studies and scoping papers
offer critical insights on:
Effective teaching & pedagogical reform
Inclusion & social justice
Climate resilience in education
Governance, management & data-driven decision-making
DARE-RC is Pakistan’s largest education research programme, generating rigorous, actionable evidence to improve education policy and practice.
DARE’s 44 research studies and scoping papers
offer critical insights on:
Effective teaching & pedagogical reform
Inclusion & social justice
Climate resilience in education
Governance, management & data-driven decision-making
Registration Details
The Summit will take place on 31 October–1 November 2026 at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Lahore, Pakistan.
Seating is limited; places will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
Register your interest early to be considered for a place.
summit programme
DAY 1 | 31 OCTOBER 2026
Venue: Suleman Dawood School of Business (SDSB) Building, Basement B-3, LUMS
08:30–09:30 | Registration & Networking
Registration and Networking; Research Posters, Publications Gallery and Multimedia Showcase
09:30–10:15 | Opening
DARE RC/ LUMS / Government / FCDO/ Dr Tayyaba Tamim (Dean, SOE, LUMS; Faculty Lead, Pedagogical Partnership Programme, LUMS Learning Institute)
Welcome Note:
- LUMS – Dr Ali Cheema (Vice-Chancellor, LUMS)
- Saima Anwar(Programme Director, DARE-RC)
Sam Waldock, Development Director, British High Commission, Pakistan
Opening Address: Nadeem Mahbub, (Federal Secretary, MoFEPT)
From Policy to Practice: Building an Evidence-Informed Education System Dr Adil Najam (President, WWF International; Dean Emeritus and Professor, Boston University; former Vice Chancellor, LUMS)
10:15–11:30 | OPENING PLENARY: Why Evidence Matters for Education Reform
Why Evidence Matters for Education Reform
Panellists
Dr Asiya Kazmi, (CEO, WISE, Qatar Foundation)
Dr Nishat Riaz (Chief Executive, Pakistan, Malala Fund)
Riaz Ahmed Kamlani (COO, The Citizens Foundation)
Abid Suleri (Executive Director, Sustainable Development Policy Institute)
Shahzad Roy (CEO, Zindagi Trust)
Moderator: Dr Faisal Bari (Associate Professor, SOE, LUMS; Senior Research Fellow, IDEAS)
11:45–13:00 | Session 1 | Data, AI and Evidence for Better Decision-Making
Thematic Briefing (5-7 mins)
Data, AI and Evidence for Better Decision-Making Dr Farah Nadeem (Assistant Professor, SOE, LUMS)
Study Spotlights (7-10 mins each):
Scaling Composite Performance Indices Dr Nasir Mahmood (VC, AIOU)
AI Use in Pakistani Classrooms Dr Tayyaba Tamim (Dean, SOE, LUMS)
Climate-Related Educational Disruptions Dr Zubair Khalid (Associate Professor, SSE, LUMS)
Moderator: Dr Jessica Albrent (Assistant Professor, SOE, LUMS)
Discussant: Dr Naeem uz Zafar, (Chief Statistician, Pakistan Bureau of Statistics)
Q/A Session
13:00–13:45 | Lunch
13:45–15:00 | Session 2 | Teaching, Learning and the Education Workforce
Thematic Briefing (5-7 mins)
Teaching, Learning and the Education Workforce Dr Monazza Aslam / Dr Zainab Salim
Study spotlights (7-10 mins each):
Teacher Learning and Teaching Quality in KP – Dr Soufia Siddiqui (Assistant Professor, SOE, LUMS; Director of Research, Mahbub ul Haq Research Centre, LUMS)
Scaling Merit Based Policies for Teacher Recruitment – Dr Laraib Niaz (Assistant Research Professor, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge)
Scaling Teaching at the Right Level in Sindh – Dr Ricardo Sabates (Professor and Deputy Director of Research, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge; member, Research for Equitable Access and Learning (REAL) Centre / Dr Camilla Hadi (Research Associate, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge; Associate Executive Editor, Cambridge Journal of Education)
Moderator: Aurelia Ardito (Chief of Learning and Skills, UNICEF)
Discussant: Dr Nausheen Adnan (Parliamentary Secretary- School Education Department, Government of Punjab)
Q/A Session
15:00–15:15 | Poster Walk & Coffee
15:15–16:30 | Session 3 | Inclusion, Equity and Climate Resilience
Thematic Briefing (5-7 mins)
Inclusion, Equity and Climate Resilience Dr Dilshad Ashraf / Dr Sahar Shah
Study Spotlights (7-10 mins each):
Schooling Strategies & Climate Change – Dr Rabea Malik (Senior Research Fellow, IDEAS; Assistant Professor, SOE, LUMS)
Educational Experiences of Religious Minorities Dr Farid Panjwani (Professor and Dean, AKU-IED; faculty member, UCL Institute of Education)
Inclusion, Equity and Climate Resilience Dr Sapana Basnet
Moderator: Peter Jacob (Executive Director, Center for Social Justice)
Q/A Session
16:30–16:45 | Closing Reflections
Synthesis of emerging themes and agenda for Day 2
DAY 2 | 1 NOVEMBER 2026
Venue: Suleman Dawood School of Business (SDSB) Building, Basement B-3, LUMS
09:00–09:15 | Reflections & Recap of Day 1 | DARE-RC
09:15–09:30 | HEC’s Vision for Advancing Research and Funding for Education Reform
Prof. Dr Niaz Ahmad Akhtar (Incumbent Chairman, Higher Education Commission)
09:30–10:45 | Session 4 | Evidence Synthesis and Research Findings
Thematic Briefing (5-7 mins)
Governance and Accountability – Saima Anwer / Zariya Mushtaq
Study spotlights (7-10 mins each):
A License to Educate – Outsourcing in Sindh and KP Dr Salman Humayun (Executive Director, Institute of Social and Policy Sciences (I-SAPS))
Decentralized Education Governance Salman Naveed Khan (Chief Executive Officer, PAMS; Team Lead, STEAM Pakistan)
Non-electoral Citizen Participation for Education Hamna Tariq (Programme Manager – Education, CERP)
A South-South Voice: Are Coalitions a Good Safeguard for Governance? Igor Ramos (International Impact Coordinator, Centro Lemann)
Moderator: Baela Raza Jamil (Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi (ITA)
Q/A Session
10:45–11:00 | Tea Break
11:00–12:15 | Session 5 | When Evidence Meets Policy: Understanding Pathways to Change
Study spotlights (7-10 mins each):
Language Planning and Policy – Dr Fauzia Shamim (Chief Academic Officer, Durbeen)
Pakistan’s Assessment Data-Use Architecture – Dr Farah Nadeem (Assistant Professor, SOE, LUMS)
Educational Technology for Deaf Learners – Dr Sana Shams (Principal Manager, Center for Language Engineering, Al-Khawarizmi Institute of Computer Science (KICS), UET, Lahore)
Behavioural Insights into Parental Engagement Umar Nadeem (CEO, Tabadlab)
Moderator: Khansa Maria (DPhil Student, University of Oxford / Visiting Faculty, LUMS)
Discussant: Shoaib Iqbal Syed (Secretary, Special Education Department, Punjab)
Q/A Session
12:15–13:30 | Session 6 | From Pilot to Scale: What Works, For Whom, and Under What Conditions?
Study spotlights (7-10 mins each):
Afternoon Schools in KP, Sindh and Baluchistan Bilal Ahmed (Teaching and Learning Lead, I-SAPS)
Large-Scale Human Capital Interventions in Punjab Dr Farah Said (Assistant Professor of Economics & Executive Director, Mahbub ul Haq Research Centre, LUMS)
Public Private Partnerships in Sindh and Punjab Dr Sajid Ali (Professor and Director of Research and Publications, AKU-IED; former Interim Dean, AKU-IED)
Moderator: Dr Javed Malik (Team Leader, ILMpact Programme, British Council)
Discussants:
- Shahid Farid (Managing Director, Punjab Education Foundation)
- Maria Wyard (Goal 3 Head (Human Capital, Inclusion, and Governance), British High Commission, Pakistan)
Q/A Session
13:30–14:15 | Lunch
14:30–15:45 | Session 7 | POLICY LABS: Defining the Next Generation of Education Reforms
Policy Lab 1: Foundational Learning & Teaching Quality
Rapid-fire presentations (scene setting)
Teacher Licensing in Sindh and Punjab Dr Zaigham Qadeer (Director (Research), Research and Policy Wing, Pakistan Institute of Education (PIE))
Analysis of CPD Models across Pakistan – Areej Mahmood (Lead, STEAM Policy Unit, Punjab, PAMS)
Understanding School Leadership Practices Abbas Rashid (Founding Member & Executive Director, Society for the Advancement of Education (SAHE)
Discussant: Musa Ali Bukhari (CEO, PECTAA)
Facilitators: Dr Zainab Salim (Research Manager, DARE-RC)
Policy Lab 2: Equity, Inclusion & Gender
Rapid-fire presentations (scene setting)
Lessons and Potential for Innovation from PEF Dr Yasra Waqar (Associate Professor and Acting Dean, School of Social Sciences and Humanities, UMT)
Child Migrants’ and Climate-Induced Disruptions Seher Aftab (Research and Advocacy Lead, Vulnerability and Resilience Unit, Centre for Human Rights)
Children with Disabilities in Mainstream Schools Dr Nasima Zain (Assistant Professor, AKU-IED)
Discussant: Prem Saagar (Special Consultant at Ministry of Education, Government of Sindh)
Facilitators: Dr Sahar Shah (Research Manager, DARE-RC)
Policy Lab 3: Governance, Data & Accountability
Rapid-fire presentations (scene setting)
Development and Institutionalisation of RTSM in Balochistan Razia Khan (Co-PI, DARE-RC Research)
Effectiveness of School Monitoring Systems Sohail Raza (Institutional Development Expert, Centre of Excellence on Countering Violent Extremism, Government of Punjab)
Political Economy of Sub-National Variation in Education Rafi Kakar (Public policy and political-economy PhD researcher, University of Cambridge; former Member for Social Sector and Devolution, Planning Commission of Pakistan)
Discussant: Omer Iftikhar Sherazi (Programme Director, PMIU-PESRP)
Facilitators: Dr Shahid Soroya (Campus Director, Comsats University, Former DG, Pakistan Institute of Education)
15:45–16:00 | Tea Break
16:00–17:00 | Closing Plenary | From Knowledge Generation to Knowledge Use
Building a Shared Agenda for Education Reform
Panellists will include representatives from government and academia providing a debrief from the Policy Labs and outlining policy priorities and opportunities for future collaboration
Discussant: Dr Tariq Banuri (Visiting Fellow, Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI); former Chairperson, Higher Education Commission of Pakistan
17:00–17:15 | Keynote Address | What Will It Take to Transform Education Systems?
Dr Ali Cheema (Vice Chancellor and Professor of Economics, LUMS; Co-founder, CERP; Senior Research Fellow, IDEAS; Co-lead Academic, International Growth Centre Pakistan Programme)
17:00–17:15 | Vote of Thanks and Closing Remarks
DARE RC/LUMS/Govt/FCDO
Maria Wyard — (Head of Health and Education, British High Commission, Pakistan)