WHETHER it is government departments, ministries, especially created government outfits or multilateral and international institutions, there is growing consensus that conferences and moots must be held — and they are termed important milestones of success.

True, expos, moots, symposia and seminars around specific themes and topics are an important tool for bringing concerned participants together. International development agencies, too, consider holding regular moots an almost sacred ritual.

But it may be useful to revisit the descriptions of the different types of moots held in the country and understand what is common to them all. For instance, a conference is a meeting of individuals invited to engage in a discussion on a certain topic. Its aim is to accomplish an identified task within a certain time frame.

A seminar is a small gathering of scholars under the stewardship of a professor or academic peer, ie it is a conference of specialists. In the domain of higher academics, a seminar is the procedure by which a candidate aiming for a research degree presents his or her findings to a body of scholars working on similar themes.

Moots have become an enterprise unto themselves.

A symposium is a convivial meeting to discuss a philosophical problem. It generates a collection of well-formed opinions or a series of articles on various aspects of a particular subject. A workshop is a session for discussion, study, training or experimentation on a specified topic. A colloquium is an academic gathering often used for piloting ideas.

Moots are convened for a wide variety of purposes. In some cases, meetings are summoned due to statutory reasons or official requirements. More often than not, these are only convened when a powerful member/participant has a direct stake. Getting a project fund sanctioned, a programme launched or a budget approved, are the normal excuses.

However, the frequency, nature and continuity of these otherwise important meetings depend entirely upon the whims of the controlling official or authority. For instance, public hearings for environmental impact related to major developmental projects are held in a hush-hush manner to fulfil a formality. A conference or a series of them may be held to extend the agenda of a regime, agency or organisation that wishes to initiate them. Memories of a former military dictator’s ‘Islamisation conferences’ are still fresh. He presented his own version of religion in these moots to justify his prolonged stay in power.

But however diverse their purpose, all these events are normally extremely expensive. The high-profile conferences held under the aegis of international agencies normally run up huge costs that include air travel, board and lodging, consultancy services and media, meals, local transportation, and mailing and correspondence during the preparatory phases. Thus, in a two- or three-day event for about two dozen outstation participants, the cost runs into millions of rupees.

Later, post-workshop/conference assignments include the publication of workshop proceedings and brainstorming for the next event. For this, new consultants are hired. In sum, moots have become an enterprise unto themselves.

English is commonly used as the medium of communication, even in places where local folk are not proficient in the language. Often, low-income local people clap at the end of each speech, totally overwhelmed by the five-star hotel. In some cases, even a vote for consensus on a crucial strategy is drawn from these simple communities, exploiting their poor English skills. The moot reports may land up on the tables of government officials who, without reading them, display them for a few days and finally relegate the documents to the side table.

It is not that moots and meetings are futile endeavours, but that some aspects of them must be reviewed. For instance, they should be held only when there is a need to get the collective input of important stakeholders; yet they must remain modest, low-budget affairs. The five-star hotel culture must be eliminated as it tends to shift the focus of the whole event. Instead, they can be held at low-cost venues such as the auditoriums or halls of campuses, training institutions or not-for-profit communal facilities.

Organising such events must be efficacious and purpose-oriented — even if they involve preliminary discussions. Efforts should be made to organise these events relying on local sources of funding. This would enable the organisers to maintain their independence, which is impossible when international stakeholders cover local issues and impinge on local deliberations. Lastly, record-keeping and documentation must be done in a meticulous manner.

The writer is a professor and acting dean at the Faculty of Architecture and Management Sciences, NED University, Karachi.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2017