Conference on 'Building Bridges and Promoting People to People Interaction in South Asia'

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News Kathmandu, Nepal - 23rd October 2011

Amb.Veena Sikri, vice-chairperson, South Asia Foundation - India represented the foundation a the Conference on "Building Bridges and Promoting People to People Interaction in South Asia" organized by CSAS in cooperation with GPPAC and RCSS.

Oct. 23-24, 2011, Hotel Radisson, Kathmandu

Her Excellency SAARC Secretary General Uz. Fathimath Dhiyana Saeed from Maldives talking to Nishchal N. Pandey Chairperson SAF Nepal (right) and former SAARC Secretary General Mr Nihal Rodrigo from Sri Lanka (left).
  
On the left, Her Excellency SAARC Secretary General Uz. Fathimath Dhiyana Saeed from Maldives conversing with SAF India Vice-Chairperson Amb. Veena Sikri about the activities of the South Asia Foundation and the various UNESCO Madanjeet Singh Institutions of Excellence in the SAARC countries.

Program

Oct. 22, 2011 (Sat.)

(Arrival of participants throughout the day)
 18:30 hrs.  Welcome Reception (Gosaikund Hall, Hotel Radisson)

 

Oct. 23, 2011 (Sun.)

9:15 am Registration
9:30 am Welcome Remarks by Nishchal N. Pandey
9:40 am Inauguration of the conference by H.E. Uz. Fathimath Dhiyana Saeed, SAARC Secretary General by lighting the traditional Nepali lamp
9:45 am  Address by Prof. Amal Jayawardane, Executive Director, Regional Centre for Strategic Studies (RCSS-Colombo)
9:55 am Address by Dr. Meenakshi Gopinath, Principal, Lady Shree Ram College, New Delhi and Board Member, RCSS.
10:05 am Keynote Address by H.E. Uz. Fathimath Dhiyana Saeed, SAARC Secretary General
10:15 am Address by the Chair - Amb. Nihal Rodrigo, former SAARC Secretary General
10:25 am Tea/Coffee Break/Media Interaction

 

Second Session

11:00 am "Role of Civil Society Organizations in Promoting Peace and Cooperation in SAARC: A Case of SAF", by Amb. Veena Sikri, vice-chairperson, South Asia Foundation-India.
11:20 am "Partners in Conflict Prevention: Civil Society Organizations and the EU", by Catherine Woollard, Executive Director, European Peacebuilding Liaison Office, Brussels.
11:40 am "Aman ki Asha Initiative Between India and Pakistan" by Ranjan Roy, Associate Editor, The Times of India
12:00 noon Discussants (Ms. Seema Kakran, WISCOMP, New Delhi and Dr. Farhan H. Siddiqi, University of Karachi)
12:10 noon Floor Discussion
12:30 noon Response from presenters (5 mins. each)
12:45 noon Lunch (The Fun Café, Hotel Radisson)

 

Third Session

14:00 hrs. "The Role of CSOs in Building Peace in South Asia: The Case Illustration of Didi Bahini" by Ms. Saloni Singh, Executive Chair, Didi Bahini
14:20 hrs. "CSOs Engagement with the ASEAN, by Corinna Lopa, Regional Coordinator, South East Asian Committee for Advocacy, Manila 
14:40 hrs. "Civil Society and State Building in Afghanistan" by Hussein Hassarat, Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission
15:00 hrs. Discussants (Ms. Hema Kiruppalani, Research Associate, Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore and Ms. Ayreen Khan, Research Assistant, Bangladesh Enterprise Institute, Dhaka)
15:20 hrs. Floor Discussion
15:40 hrs. Response from presenters (5 mins. each)
15:55 hrs. End of Session 3
18:00 hrs. Visit to Thamel and Dinner (foreign participants only)

 

Oct. 24, 2011 (Mon.)

Fourth Session

9:30 am "Relationships and Linkages between SAARC, Corporate Sectors and CSOs", Amb. Nihal Rodrigo, former SAARC Secretary General
9:50 am "Role of Media in Promoting Peace and Cooperation in South Asia" by Gopal Khanal, Secretary, SAFMA-Nepal Chapter
10:10 am Discussants (Ambassador Kedar Bhakta Shrestha and Ambassador Prof. Mohan Prasad Lohani)
10:30 am Floor Discussion
10:50 am Response from Presenters (5 mins. each)
11:00 am Tea/Coffee Break

 

Concluding Session

11:15 am "Activities/Structures/Network of GPPAC-South Asia" by Ms. Nadeeka Withana, Regional Liaison Officer, GPPAC-South Asia
11:30 am Discussion
11:45 am Final Words by Prof. Amal Jayawardane and Mr. Nishchal N. Pandey 
12:00 noon Conclusion of the conference / Lunch at TFC
14:00 hrs.

Visit to the SAARC Secretariat and meeting with Officials
15:30 hrs. Visit to the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament for Asia and the Pacific (UNRCPD) and meeting with Officials
16:00 hrs. Free Evening

 

Oct. 25, 2011 (Tue.)

Departures