17/09/17

伊斯兰世界如何恢复其在科学中的作用

OIC Summit on Science and Technology 2017
Copyright: OIC

速度阅读

  • Muslim-majority countries agree to act on tackling science deficit
  • Consensus reached on proposals tabled at summit this week
  • Also needed is cultural approach to foster informed debate, critical inquiry

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Muslim-majority countries face a science crisis. Steps in two key areas are being taken to solve it, says Naeem Khan.

It is no secret that Muslim-majority countries have lagged behind much of the world in scientific and technological progress for far too long. On average, they spend less than 0.5 per cent of their GDP (gross domestic product) on research and development, compared with five times that in developed economies.

这re has been important progress. The last decade or so has seen major investments by several OIC (Organisation of Islamic Cooperation) countries in education and scientific infrastructure.

But this is still far too little.

三年前,我帮助领导的伊斯兰会议组织与皇家学会合作,对伊斯兰世界面临的科学赤字进行了首次重大分析。这report发现,伊斯兰工业组织仅占全球研究支出的2.4%,占专利的1.6%和科学出版物的6%,尽管拥有近四分之一的世界人口。

社会、经济和安全的影响this are staggering. It means that the Muslim world is not investing enough in the core scientific and technological tools to generate solutions for newly emerging threats from climate change, water scarcity and food insecurity. Several studies have also shown a link between the outbreak of conflict and how climate change affects drought and food prices.

“提高年轻人可用的科学教育资源的质量和数量将有助于在整个伊斯兰世界中迅速传播创新和探究文化。”

Naeem Khan

That is why this week (September 10-11), the OIC held its first科学技术峰会, with heads of state and government ministers from 56 Muslim nations.

这summit was designed to tackle the science deficit by focusing on two key areas.

在S&T支持方面达成共识

这first focus was to generate a consensus among the OIC’s 57 member-states on proposals to be adopted that support science and technology. This was done successfully at the summit across a range of areas including energy, research spending, education and health.

成员国通过的关键建议包括在未来十年内将全球科学出版物和专利的数量增加一倍;使每百万人民的科学工人数量增加一倍;并增加了10%的高科技产品和服务在成员国的经济和贸易活动中的份额。

Ensuring this happens, and delivering on these targets, will require financial investment from member states to ensure they are able to develop the required knowledge and expertise.

峰会上的政策讨论还集中在如何改善欧洲国外国家公民的生活。例如,在健康方面,欧盟敦促政府将健康支出提高至至少10%的国家预算。政策建议还呼吁为男女普遍接受教育。

还采用了建立高科技基础设施的建议,以便穆斯林国家可以进入大型科学计划。其中包括一个可能导致伊斯兰航天局的太空技术中心。它还包括通过安全的高速内部内网络连接所有57个OIC成员国的建议,以及各个成员国创建国家基因银行,以保护和交换植物遗传资源与研究中心的交换。

一种文化方法

However, addressing the Islamic world’s science deficit also requires a deeper, more cultural approach — one that promotes the value of informed debate and critical inquiry, essential to building the knowledge-economies of the future. This is the second area of focus.

国家政策和对科学的投资将再次在实现这一目标中发挥重要作用。

增强可获得年轻人的科学教育资源的质量和数量将有助于在整个伊斯兰世界中快速传播创新和探究文化。

Proposals discussed and adopted at the summit — to build new technology parks alongside major OIC universities, for example — will also contribute to this by creating links between centres of learning, industry and business.

However, let’s not forget that the Muslim world does not need to create a new culture of scientific enquiry — it always had one. It just needs to revive it. Part of our inspiration for organising the Islamic world’s first collective science and technology summit was Islam’s own ‘golden age’ of science.

Historically, there was no conflict between scientific inquiry, the free and open exploration and expression of ideas, and genuine Islamic teachings. That is precisely why science flourished under past Islamic civilizations, and why fields of science like astronomy, agriculture, medicine, horticulture, oceanography, physics, mathematics and chemistry were revolutionized or pioneered by Muslims.

这也是为什么它如此适合的原因,以至于会员国采用阿斯塔纳宣言, which calls on “all Muslim world countries to strengthen the culture of education and science, especially for youth and women as a means of enhancing social and economic modernization and socio-economic progress.”

Rather than seeing science as an alien doctrine that threatens Islamic traditions, the Islamic world must re-orient its perspective by reclaiming its role in science.

Naeem Khan是OIC(伊斯兰合作组织)的助理秘书长,前巴基斯坦驻沙特阿拉伯大使。