Technical Committee on Science and Technology of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) held its fourth meeting on 29th and 30th June in Islamabad, Pakistan. Mr. Muhammad Azam Khan Swati, Federal Minister for Science and Technology, Government of Pakistan inaugurated the meeting hosted by the Government of Pakistan at Best Western Hotel, Islamabad. Delegations from SAARC member countries including Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, which are also the members of the Commission on Science and Technology for Sustainable Development in the South (COMSATS), attended the Meeting.

On behalf of COMSATS, Dr. Imtinan Elahi Qureshi, Executive Director COMSATS participated as a member of Pakistani delegation. Availing himself of the presence of members from the international community, Dr. Qureshi briefed the delegates on the programmes and activities of COMSATS. Besides discussing the Programme of Cooperation in the field of S&T and web-portal for SAARC Technology Cooperation and Commercialization proposed by India, the Committee reviewed the status of implementation of the decisions taken in the 3rd Meeting of SAARC Technical Committee on Science and Technology, held in New Delhi, India, on September 15, 2008.

The participants also deliberated upon the “SAARC Initiative for Industrial Research and Development Cooperation” and India’s proposal for mounting SAARC Science Caravan, as well as the plausible dates and venues for the Second Meeting of SAARC Ministers of Science and Technology and the Fifth Meeting of the SAARC Technical Committee on Science and Technology.