The School of Politics and International Relations in partnership with the Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) Pakistan organized the Model Council of Common Interest (MCCI) on December 2, 2021.
The MCCI exercise involved undergraduate students from International Relations and Political Science who in four sessions rigorously debated myriad issues related to women rights, educational equality, poverty eradication and health emergencies. Four groups, each consisting of ten members, discussed and debated the following themes respectively: Youth and Women Empowerment (Group1), Natural Resource Distribution (Group 2), Health (Group 3), and Higher Education (Group 4). The respective groups argued the different dimensions of these pertinent issues and brainstormed innovative ideas with the purpose of building a consensus. The student group members presented their policy recommendations in the form of a joint communique, which will be shared with the Higher Education Commission (HEC) and the Parliament of Pakistan.
A jury of 3 members comprising Dr. Sadia Kazmi (Strategic Vision Institute), Dr Muhammad Shoaib (National Defence University), and Dr Muhammad Waqas Saleem (Quaid-i-Azam University) evaluated student performances. Ms. Meher Ghawas and Mr. Lal Zaman from the HSF were present during the deliberations. The SPIR faculty including Prof. Dr. Zafar Jaspal, Dr. Farhan Siddiqi, Dr. Aisha Younus, Dr. Raja Qaiser, Dr. Nadeem Mirza, and Dr. Summar Rao appreciated the preparation, hard work and presentation skills of the participating students.
The Model CCI is part of a joint agreement between SPIR and HSF aimed at enhancing the critical skills of students and providing them a democratic forum for debate and discussion on important public policy issue areas.