DNA

ISLAMABAD, SEPT 26 – COMSATS joined the global efforts of United Nations in favor of promoting South-South Cooperation by holding a webinar involving experts from Switzerland, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago and Pakistan. The webinar was hosted at the Secretariat of the Commission on Science and Technology for Sustainable Development in the South (COMSATS), Islamabad, and was entitled “Current Challenges: Imperative of South-South Cooperation”.

Following senior officials and representatives shared their intellectual inputs during the webinar:  H.E. Mr. Chad Blackman, Barbados Ambassador to United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva, Switzerland; Mr. Denis Nkala, Regional Coordinator/Representative, Asia Pacific Regional Office, United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC); Senator Hazel Thompson-Ahye of Trinidad and Tobago; and Ms. Ellen Thom, Technical Officer, Reproductive Health at World Health Organization Pakistan.

Their talks shed light on various dynamics, opportunities and challenges related to South-South Cooperation and highlighted its growing importance in view of the ongoing pandemic. Some issues highlighted included: Need for microfinance opportunities for the most vulnerable nations; clearer cooperative mechanisms; reducing reliance on the North; and re-assessment of expertise, issues, priorities and timelines in the region (South). Institutions of the South were urged to work in cooperation with IGOs like COMSATS to fight global issues such as climate change and pandemics. Mutual cooperation and support was considered absolutely necessary for achieving the global agenda of 2030 in these challenging times. Stronger collaborations and partnerships in health sector were urged.

COMSATS’ perspective came from Ambassador Shahid Kamal, Advisor on Climate Change and Environment, and Engr. Qaiser Nawab, who introduced COMSATS as an active proponent of South-South Cooperation and highlighted its pivotal role in harnessing South-South cooperative efforts in the region. It was noted that COMSATS’ mandate of South-South cooperation is a manifestation of solidarity among people and countries of the South and encourages interventions for cooperation for self-reliance among nations as well as national development.

With South-South Cooperation at the core of its operational mechanism, COMSATS is contributing greatly to the Global Development Agenda 2030 of UN.