Shaikh Zayed University

For the university in the United Arab Emirates, see Zayed University.
Shaikh Zayed University
د شیخ زاید پوهنتون
View of SZU in 2012
Other name
Khost University
Former name
Afghan University Peshawar
TypePublic
Established2000
ChancellorShaikh Mohammad Yaqoob Niazai
Students3,000
Location
Khost
,
Afghanistan

33°20′56″N 69°52′09″E / 33.3489°N 69.8691°E / 33.3489; 69.8691
Websiteszu.edu.af/en

Shaikh Zayed University (SZU; Pashto: د شیخ زاید پوهنتون), also known as Khost University (Pashto: د خوست پوهنتون), is a public university in the city of Khost, southeastern Afghanistan. With its original name Afghan University Peshawar, it was initially established in 2000 in Peshawar. It was shifted to Khost by special orders of the former Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and was officially registered in 2003. The university was named after Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the first President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), who sponsored the construction of its campus in Khost.[1]

Work on the university started when Governor Hakim Taniwal was in office. The next governor, Merajuddin Patan, made a trip to the UAE, and requested funds for the completion of the university. In order to honor UAE's help, the university was renamed Shaikh Zayed University. Governor Patan had a track record for opening schools, and supporting education for all genders, so it was only natural for him to push for the construction of SZU. The university's new campus was officially inaugurated in March of 2008.

SZU has 9 faculties and more than 3,000 students. It has a private radio station for journalism faculty. It is the only university in Afghanistan with a faculty in computer science. It has a hostel for students, and medical students are trained at the government-run Khost Hospital.[2] It is one of 11 Afghan educational institutions that have e-learning facilities, provided by the USAID.[3]

  1. ^ "UAE urged to help resolve Sheikh Zayed University problems". Pajhwok Afghan News. 11 March 2015. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  2. ^ "Shaikh Zayed University (Khost) | Admission | Tuition | University". www.unipage.net. Retrieved 2021-01-21.
  3. ^ "Program highlights: A new way to learn English" (PDF). USAID. 2009-05-01. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-07. Retrieved 2009-08-24.