The mission of the Aga Khan University (AKU) is to improve quality of life in the developing world and beyond through world-class teaching, research and health-care delivery. The University educates students for local and global leadership, generates new knowledge to solve problems that affect millions of people, and raises standards and aspirations in the countries in which it works. We empower women and the disadvantaged, build support for pluralism, and collaborate with local partners and world-renowned organizations to achieve shared goals.
Founded in 1983 as Pakistan’s first private university, AKU is a not-for-profit institution and an agency of the Aga Khan Development Network. Starting in 2000, the University expanded to Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Afghanistan, and the United Kingdom.
AKU began life as a health-sciences university. We are among the largest private health-care providers in Pakistan and East Africa. Our hospitals were the first in those regions accredited by U.S.-based Joint Commission International, and our research and our graduates have influenced health policy and practice nationally and internationally.
More recently, we have initiated programmes in teacher education, the study of Muslim civilisations, journalism, early childhood development and public policy. In the near future, we will launch a Faculty of Arts and Sciences whose programmes will educate future leaders in a wide range of fields, and we will establish additional graduate professional schools.
