Ministry of Science and Technology (Pakistan)
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| Agency overview | |
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| Formed | |
| Headquarters | Islamabad, Islamabad Capital Territory |
| Minister responsible |
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| Agency executive |
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| Website | http://www.most.gov.pk |
The Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST) is a Cabinet-level ministry of the Government of Pakistan concerned with science and technology in Pakistan and in general, Pakistan's science policy, planning, co-ordination and directing of efforts to initiate and launch scientific and technological programs as well as projects aimed at economic development. The ministry is coordinated by the Federal Minister for Science and Technology, and is headquartered in Islamabad.
Mission
The Ministry of science and Technology is the national focal Ministry and enabling arm of the Government of Pakistan for planning, co-ordination and directing efforts to initiate and launch scientific and technological programs and projects aimed at economic development of the country. The Ministry is working on the national agenda to have a sound and sustainable Science and technological research base which would lead to the socio-economic development of the country and to achieve the vision for a better Pakistan.
The principle agenda of the MoST is building Pakistans technological competence in the 21st century by leap forging into new markets, develop a larger pool of human resource for reverse brain drain, and integrate the soft technology infrastructure into hard modern technological base, strengthen technology institutions, effective S & TR governance and enhance the capacity if indigenous innovation systems.
Science Advisors
In 1950, the office of Science Advisor was created by former Prime minister Liaqat Ali Khan who sent an invitation to Salimuzzaman Siddiqui to emigrate to Pakistan. An office was set up in Prime minister Secretariat, and Siddiqui served as its first Science Advisor. In 1959, Military dictator of Pakistan and then-known as Commander-in-Chief of Pakistan Army, Field Marshal Ayub Khan moved the office in Presidential Residence. World-renowned scientist Dr. Abdus Salam was appointed as science advisor to the President, who continued as Science Advisor to Prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's democratic regime. The post was colloquially known as "President's Science Advisor" till Pakistan's political system was shifted back to Parliamentary democracy system through a constitutional amendment, passed by the Parliament in 1974. The post was renamed as "Prime minister's Science Advisor".
In Pakistan, a Science Advisor is a prestigious and an important tier in Pakistan's science circle. A science advisor is a chief and principal advisor to the Prime minister with a full status of Federal Cabinet minister. A science advisor advises the Prime minister on the effects of science and technology on domestic and international affairs, and also mandate to supervise the government-led science and technology, and engineering projects in the government agencies and departments. As of today, the director of this office is colloquially known as the "Prime minister's Science Advisor".
| Order | Listing Science Advisers | Tenure | Prime Ministers | Presidents | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Salimuzzaman Siddiqui | 1951–1959 | Liaquat Ali Khan | Iskandar Ali Mirza | Appointed by Ali Khan and served under various other Prime ministers |
| 2nd | Abdus Salam | 1960–1974 | Zulfikar Ali Bhutto | Ayub Khan | Appointed by Ayub Khan in 1960 and served under both Zulfikar Bhutto from 1970 until 1974 |
| 3rd | Mubashir Hassan | 1974–1977 | Zulfikar Ali Bhutto | ||
| 4th | Major-General Zahid Ali Akbar | 1977–1983 | General Muhmmad Zia-ul-Haq | ||
| 5th | Munir Ahmad Khan | 1983–1990 | M.K. Junejo Benazir Bhutto | General Zia-ul-Haq | Appointed by Zia-ul-Haq in 1983, served under Benazir Bhutto until 1990 |
| 6th | Javaid Laghari | 1993–1996 | Benazir Bhutto | ||
| 7th | Ishfaq Ahmad | 1996–2001 | Navaz Sharif | General Prevez Musharraf | Appointed by Nawaz Sharif, served under both Sharif (1999) and Musharraf until 2001 |
| 8th | Abdul Qadeer Khan | 2001–2004 | Shaukat Aziz | ||
| 9th | Atta ur Rahman | 2004–2008 | Shaukat Aziz | ||
| Ishfaq Ahmad | 2008–2013 | Yousaf Raza Gillani | Asif Ali Zardari | Re-appointed by Gillani in 2008 for second term | |
| 10th | Zahid Hamid | 2013–President | Nawaz Sharif | ||
National Research Institutes and Departments
The Ministry of Science and Technology National Research Institutes and Technological departments is an administrative and systematic division that oversees, coordinates, and supervises the system of facilities and laboratories for the purpose of developing and promoting advancement of science and technology to benefits the country's economy and foreign policy. Majority of these institutes are federally funded but are controlled autonomously by their appointed and designated director-generals who are under contract to Ministry of Science. These national research institutes and laboratories are staffed by private corporations and academic universities, and conduct their research on behalf of the government on national and defence initiatives.
National Research Laboratories
- Fuel Research Centre PCSIR Karachi*
- Kahuta Research Laboratories*, at Kahuta District
- Abdus Salam Research Laboratories* at Government College University
- Metallurgical Laboratories* at Wah Military District.
- High Tension Laboratories (HTL)* at Government College University
- Marine Systems Laboratories*, University of Karachi
- Precision Engineering Complex*, at Jinnal International Terminal
- Spark Mass Spectroscopy and Ion Source Laboratories,* Virtual University
- Abdus Salam Mathematical Laboratories* at Government College University
- Analytical Research Laboratories*, at PINSTECH
- Vacuum Technology Laboratory*, at Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology
- Food Irradiation Laboratories*, at Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology
- Charge Accelerator Laboratories, at Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology
National Research Councils
- Council for Work and Housing Research (CWHR)
- National Institute of Electronics (NIE)
- National Institute of Oceanography (NIO)
- Pakistan Council for Renewable Energy Technologies (PCRET)
- Pakistan Council for Science and Technology (PCST)
- Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR)
- Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR)
- Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC)
- Pakistan National Accreditation Council (PNAC)
- Pakistan Science Foundation (PSF)
- Pakistan Scientific and Technological Information Centre (PASTIC)
- Pakistan Museum of Natural History (PMNH)
- Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA)
- STEDEC Technology Commercialization Corporation of Pakistan (Private) Limited
- National Commission on Nano-Science and Technology (NCNST)
National Research Institutes
- COMSATS Institute of Information Technology.
- National University of Sciences and Technology, Pakistan.
- Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology, Rawalpindi (1965).
- Center For Applied and Molecular Biology (CAMB), Islamabad (1980).
- Centre for Advanced Mathematics and Physics (CAMP), Islamabad (1980).
- Pakistan Institute of Theoretical Physics*, at University of Engineering and Technology at Lahore (1976).
- National Center for Theoretical Physics, Islamabad.
- International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Pakistan Chapter*, Islamabad (1979).
- International Nathiagali Centre for Theoretical Physics, Nathiagali, Pakistan (1974).
- Institute of Space and Planetary Astrophysics*, at Karachi University (1994).
- H.E.J. Research Institute of Chemistry, *, at Karachi University (1967).
- Institute of Theoretical Physics, at Quaid-e-Azam University (1964).
- Institute of Nuclear Engineering, *, at Karachi University (1992).
- Centre for High Energy Physics, at Punjab University (1984).
- Defence Science and Technological Organization, Chaklala Military District (1960).
- Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology (1970).
- Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences (1967).
- Nuclear Institute for Food and Agriculture (1984).
See also
References
External links
- Chief website
- National Institute of Oceanography -Ministry of Science and Technology (English)
