Science may be gateway to diplomacy

Islamabad: Science can serve as a gateway to diplomacy, said Dr Ousmane Kane, leading plant scientist from Senegal.

Me Kane was speaking at an event on scientific diplomacy organised by Institute of Regional Studies (IRS) here Monday. Dr Kane was of the view that the scientific cooperation can transcend boundaries leading to benefits of the mankind. He added that the scientific community could also assist the diplomats in negotiations with regard to issues related to their scientific specialisations. He maintained that, conversely, diplomacy could also be leveraged to promote scientific cooperation among nations.

Elaborating on his personal experiences of working with different organidations, he encouraged all Muslim countries to increase scientific collaboration and promote greater interaction between their scientists through scientific events and collaborations. He stated that embassies of all Muslim countries can play an active role in promoting such collaboration between the scientific communities across borders.

Nadeem Riyaz, president, IRS, stated that contemporary diplomacy was challenging as it has to deal with a wide variety of subjects including the common threats of climate change and the need for scientific collaboration in fields like energy, science and technology, human rights, tolerance, water scarcity, etc. It was essential for scientists and diplomats to support each other’s endeavours for creating synergy against common threats and addressing the common needs of humanity, h concluded.