Rural areas need to be focused for educating masses on scientific lines to understand important issues like climate change, environmental degradation and how to respond to natural calamities, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Social Sector Shahnaz Wazir Ali said on Tuesday. She was addressing the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on ‘Capacity Building of the Rural Masses through Promotion of Science’. The document was finalised between Pakistan Science Foundation (PSF) and Strengthening Participatory Organisation (SPO). UNESCO Country Director Dr KK Nagata was also present on the occasion. Shahnaz said role of local units of communities for enhancing scientific capacity was the key to any development process, adding that the Pakistan Peoples’ Party had the credit to establish PSF in 1973 and it continued strengthening individuals, institutions and partnerships for rural development.
UNESCO Country Director Nagata described the MoU as a trend-setting partnership for promoting scientific education and making access to it possible for each individual, including women and children. “In this globalised world, science and technology is the key to individual and national success which should be for everyone,” Dr Nagata said, adding that no country could develop if the education in the fields of science and technology was not shared with the masses. She also stressed that curiosity should be promoted in children with rural background through knowledge of science. Earlier, PSF Chairman Dr Manzoor H Soomro highlighted the objectives of the MoU and said the PSF and SPO along with other organisations would work for community development through promotion of science. He also added that the PSF had already signed a MoU with a media organisations for free broadcast of documentaries based on science and technology education and French Academy of Sciences for inquiry-based science education. SPO Chief Executive Naseer Memon said they had a network in 75 districts in the country and was very excited to have new partnership with the PSF.
