ISLAMABAD, Dec 15: Social sciences will play an effective role in preservation of national interest in the coming days.

With the ongoing intensive globalization, the biggest challenge countries would be facing is maintaining of national characters and indigenous cultures, which is only possible through promotion of social sciences and humanities.

This was stated by Quaid-i-Azam University Vice-Chancellor UAG Isani in his welcome address at the inaugural session of the first national conference on “State of social sciences and humanities: current scenario and emerging trends”, here on Monday.

The three-day programme has been organized by the QAU under the auspices of the National Committee on Development of Social Sciences and Humanities of the Higher Education Commission with financial assistance of Unesco.

“It is the discipline of social sciences, such as history, anthropology, that will tell our younger generation about their past, present and what would happen in the coming years”, Mr Isani said.

He hoped that the conference would go a long way in achieving its goals.

Dr Dushka Haider Sayed said social sciences in Pakistan painted a dismal picture of conditions for social scientists.

She said over the last many decades social sciences had not been accorded due respect in terms of treatment which natural sciences and other disciplines were getting.

“Academia of social sciences is not getting encouraging remunerations; they don’t see future prospects either, hence bright students are not encouraged to join this profession that too in social sciences.”

In the past, social sciences were given lesser importance and even PhDs in social sciences like in natural sciences were not given special research allowance.

However, over the last a couple of years, things have been getting better such as research allowance has been granted to PhDs in social sciences, HEC’s scholarship at PhD level has also been started for humanities related subjects.

Vice-Chancellor Fatima Jinnah Women University Dr Najma Najam said this was a wake-up call to become more visible, more involved in the research and teaching of social sciences.