Professor Dr. Abbas Lafta Al-Aqabi, President of Wasit University, participated in the second meeting of the University Advisory Board for Iraqi universities in 2025. The meeting was chaired by the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Dr. Naim Al-Aboudi, in the presence of senior ministry officials and presidents of public universities.

At the outset of the meeting, the Minister of Higher Education reaffirmed the ministry’s unwavering commitment to its academic and service-oriented role in supporting students, providing assistance, and fostering leadership opportunities.

He further emphasized the importance of upholding fundamental academic values and preserving university traditions during academic events, thereby reinforcing the status of higher education institutions as exemplary models in fulfilling their mission and developmental objectives.

The Minister reiterated the necessity of operating within the granted authorities, facilitating the completion of procedures in accordance with legal requirements, and streamlining processes to optimize time and effort, all in alignment with the ministry’s comprehensive digital transformation and automation initiatives.

Key decisions and directives from the meeting included:

The immediate update and upload of student, faculty, and curriculum data by universities, colleges, and institutes—both public and private—into the central systems of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (SIS, LMS, HRMS), as part of the ongoing digitalization project inaugurated by the Prime Minister.

The adoption of a specialized form for discussing postgraduate diploma projects in medical fields.

Raising the minimum required score for faculty performance evaluation to 75% in the 2024/2025 academic year evaluation form.

Approval of the inclusion of PhD holders with the rank of “Lecturer,” provided they possess expertise and competency, in scientific committees within academic departments in cases where higher academic ranks are unavailable.

Endorsement of the draft law for the Urban and Regional Planning Institute for Postgraduate Studies.

The Advisory Board meeting also featured several presentations on digital transformation, automation efforts within the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and the Study in Iraq program.