A flourishing higher education sector is critical to a nation's

Owen Jones, in his reflections on society and progress, declared: “A flourishing higher education sector is critical to a nation’s economy and culture.” In this truth, there is both urgency and majesty. For a nation may have armies, wealth, and fertile fields, but without the guiding light of higher education, it stumbles like a giant without sight. Universities and centers of learning are not mere ornaments of civilization; they are its lifeblood, sustaining both material strength and spiritual greatness.

The meaning of this saying is that higher education is the forge where minds are sharpened, where innovation is born, and where the traditions of culture are preserved and renewed. From lecture halls and libraries emerge the physicians who heal, the engineers who build, the poets who inspire, and the leaders who guide nations. If such a sector flourishes, a nation grows not only in economy but in soul. But if it falters—if learning withers and is neglected—then wealth crumbles and culture decays, leaving only the shell of greatness without its living spirit.

The origin of this wisdom lies in the long testimony of history. In the Islamic Golden Age, cities like Baghdad and Córdoba were radiant not only because of trade or conquest, but because their universities preserved and expanded the knowledge of science, medicine, and philosophy. These centers of higher education enriched their economies with inventions and discoveries, but they also nourished their cultures with art, poetry, and wisdom that inspired generations beyond their borders. Knowledge was the root, and flourishing nations were the fruit.

Consider also the Renaissance in Europe. It was the revival of classical learning through universities that birthed an age of brilliance. From this soil arose Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Galileo—figures who reshaped art, science, and the very imagination of humanity. Italy’s cities thrived in economy, driven by trade and innovation, but it was the flourishing of higher education that gave birth to a cultural rebirth that still guides the Western world today. Here we see Owen Jones’ words confirmed by the witness of centuries.

The reverse is also true. When higher learning is suppressed or neglected, nations wither. The fall of the Library of Alexandria, the persecution of scholars under despotic rulers, or the silencing of universities during totalitarian regimes—all these moments brought not only cultural darkness but economic decline. For when thought is shackled, invention dies; and when invention dies, so too does prosperity. No economy, no culture, can remain vital if it despises the light of education.

The lesson for us is clear: to build a strong and lasting nation, invest not only in industry or defense, but in higher education. Support universities, protect academic freedom, and ensure that knowledge flows freely across generations. A society that honors its scholars, its teachers, its students, will reap harvests not only of wealth but of wisdom, not only of progress but of dignity. For it is in the classroom and the laboratory that the future is forged, and in the arts and philosophy that the soul of a people is preserved.

So what must you do? If you are a citizen, defend the value of education against neglect and short-sightedness. If you are a student, pursue knowledge not only for your own gain, but for the uplift of your community. If you are a leader, remember that every coin given to higher education returns tenfold in prosperity and in cultural strength. And if you are a parent, teach your children to revere learning, for in their minds lies the destiny of the nation.

Thus, remember Owen Jones’ words: “A flourishing higher education sector is critical to a nation’s economy and culture.” Carry them as a law of life and of statecraft. For the strength of nations is not measured only by the might of their armies or the weight of their gold, but by the brilliance of their universities, the courage of their thinkers, and the enduring flame of their culture. Where education flourishes, a people cannot fail; where it dies, no wealth or sword can save them.