An invited lecture was delivered by the guest speaker, Prof Dr Bilveer Singh, from Department of Political Science at National University of Singapore (NUS), titled: “Evolution of ASEAN: Lessons from SAARC and the Potential Role of Pakistan” at the University of Central Punjab on Tuesday.
It is pertinent to mention that NUS is ranked No 1 university in Asia and No 11 in world by QS ranking 2022. The event was organized by Department of Political Science and IR under the auspices of Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. The chief objective of this event was to make students acquainted with the importance and role of ASEAN in ongoing global politics and also to make students aware with the potential role and contribution of Pakistan in ‘Connectivity Politics’.
The distinguished speaker provided the background information of ASEAN, the most successful regional organization of developing world. Then he shed light on the strategic objectives and aims of this successful alliance of regional states under ASEAN, which include economic growth, social progress, cultural development and it also includes promoting regional peace and stability. After that, he made a comparative analysis of ASEAN and SAARC i.e. unlike SAARC, ASEAN promote mutual assistance and active collaboration of member states.
Moreover, he discussed the limitations of SAARC and the key reasons behind the success of ASEAN in today’s world. Lastly, he focused on the role of South Asian states such as Pakistan and India that can play a role as a Peacemaker and Engine of Growth in South Asia by following the model of ASEAN as it is playing a role of connector between states and non-state actors. The discussion was followed by Q & A session. Prof. Singh answered the questions from students very well. At the end, the guest speaker was presented with a souvenir by Dean Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.
