Islamabad (Muhammad Yasir) Science Diplomacy is an intricate blending of science and the diplomatic process, which can be used as a tool for health, environment, education, and a tool for peace and prosperity. In a nutshell, Science Diplomacy is the tool for achieving Sustainable Development Goals. This was stated by the speakers of a seminar on Science Diplomacy, organized by Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Pakistan Academy of Sciences and COMSTECH in collaboration with COMSATS, ECOSF and Technology Times at COMSTECH auditorium here today.
The seminar was focused to highlight the role of science in diplomacy.
Chief guest of the event Dr. Tariq Banuri, Coordinator General, COMSTECH while stressing Science Diplomacy said, “On the one hand, diplomats have been instrumental in promoting scientific and technological collaboration between states while on the other, Science &Technology cooperation has been employed as a tool of diplomacy for soft, and sometimes hard, power projection.”
The speakers shed light on themes, such as Science Policy and Science
Diplomacy, Cyber Diplomacy, Science Communications, Popularization of
Science as Science Diplomacy Initiative, Environment and Climate Change Diplomacy, Science Journalism and Pakistan’s Development Agenda
in the context of SDGs.
It is mentioned that science, technology and innovation have also been recognized as the key drivers for the achievement of the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. International scientific collaboration takes place in a conducive eco-system. Among other things, successful partnerships depend on the goals and desired outcomes of collaboration, respective capacities and needs, strengths and weaknesses of the partners as well as the inter-governmental, regulatory and policy frameworks governing STI.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), Islamabad, Pakistan launched
its “Science Diplomacy Initiative” in January 2019 as an instrument
for diplomacy to foster Pakistan’s international STI collaborations
and bring sharper focus in the foreign policy realm on SDGs
implementation and government’s socio-economic development agenda.
The speakers of the seminar include: Prof. Dr. M. Aslam Baig, Sec.
General, Pakistan Academy of Sciences PAS; Muhammad Kamran Akhter, DG
ACDIS/Science Diplomacy, MoFA; Sayyed Paras Ali, CEO/Editor Technology
Times; Prof. Dr. Manzoor Hussain Soomro, President ECOSF; Dr. S. M.
Junaid Zaidi, Executive Director COMSATS; Prof. Dr. M. Qasim Jan,
Advisor COMSTECH and President PAS; Syed Ammar Jaffry, Founder, SDGs
Academy; and Dr Zaigham Abbas, Deputy Director (Chemical), IC Wing,
Ministry of Climate Change.
Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) are among the keydrivers for socio-economic development. STI has assumedincreasing significance given the scientific dimensions of most of the contemporary challenges. The transnational and global nature of the contemporary challenges necessitates international cooperation to deal with thosechallenges. Hence the necessity of international scientificcooperation and science diplomacy is imperative for Pakistan.
