ISLAMABAD  -  President Dr Arif Alvi said that the avail­ability of knowledge should not be con­tained under the mere tag of ‘copyrights’ as greater accessibility could help human­ity to move through the current economic, social and global challenges.

The president was speaking as a chief guest at a ceremony to mark the 29th-an­niversary celebration of the Commission on Science and Technology for Sustainable Development in the South (COMSATS) at the Aiwan e Sadr.

The event was attended by members of the diplomatic corps, former diplomats, members of academia and the media. 

Predident Alvi stressed the need to share the latest scientific breakthroughs, experiences and achievements for the greater benefits of entire humanity, the president said that scientific knowledge should be shared among the nations with­out any hindrance by resetting the prior­ities which were focused somewhat else­where. 

“Open knowledge resources should be utilized and the world should work for the mutual transfer of knowledge. The in­justices should be addressed,” he empha­sised. 

The president further said that transfor­mation in the world could take place in the presence of ‘ethics or humanity-based or­der’, adding the new world would be de­pendent upon these shifts. 

While the rules-based world order was dominated by material-driven priorities, he opined. 

He regretted that contrary to the re­quirements of the world, the prevalent tendency was towards the ultra-rich who had been becoming richer while the poor of the world were mired in poverty and deprivation.

He stressed that just and equitable dis­tribution of wealth in the world could alle­viate the sufferings of humanity.

“The world is not ready to change the ex­ploitative attitude and end exploitation,” he said and referred to a recent report of OXFAM which said that billionaires had doubled their income while about 5 bil­lion people in the world witnessed shrink­age in their earnings.

President Alvi said that genome se­quencing was one of the major break­throughs in the scientific world which had become more accessible to people due to the exponential pace of scientific develop­ments. 

The world is heading towards exponen­tial development as the technology will no longer remain static,” he added.

In future, he said, quantum computing could handle the data of billions of hu­mans with regard to their health, besides opening up ‘tremendous possibilities in the agriculture sector’.

The president cited the agri-advance­ment of the Netherlands, which though a smaller country, became the second larg­est exporter of agri-products in the world, adding the country had tapped the water resources by conservation methods and promoting plant science.

He said Pakistan could also become one of the world’s leading nutrition-supplying countries by working on modern scientif­ic lines. Citing costly power production, he said the advancement in solar technology could address the issue.

The president also expressed his satis­faction that the world including Pakistan had raised awareness about carbon emis­sions which still required wider coopera­tion among the nations.

The president also lauded the contribu­tions of the COMSATS in the realms of sci­ence and technology among its 27 mem­bers.

The president also cut a cake along with the envoys of member states of COMSATS to celebrate the occasion.

Executive Director COMSATS Dr Na­fees Zakaria, in his speech, said that in to­day’s rapidly evolving world, science and technology stood as the bedrock of prog­ress and the key to unlocking solutions for pressing global challenges.

Prof. Dr. Lin Zhaohui, Director, the Inter­national Center for Climate and Environ­ment Sciences (ICCES), China, on the occa­sion, said the milestone in the journey of COMSATS needed to be cherished for the organization’s continued commitment to promoting South-South and triangular Co­operation in the realm of science, technol­ogy and innovation. 

He also highlighted the issue of climate change as one of the imminent threats to the planet and appreciated COMSATS for being at the forefront of promoting sus­tainable solutions and environmental stewardship. 

COMSATS an intergovernmental orga­nization of 27 member states, has its Sec­retariat hosted by the Government of Pa­kistan, in Islamabad since 1994. Nobel Laureate and world-renowned scientist Prof. Abdus Salam was the brain behind COMSATS’ creation.