Dr. Andreas Reis (seated in center), with CBEC faculty, invited guests, MBE Class of 2019 and PGD Class of 2018. This photo was taken on his visit in April 2018 for the commemorating ceremony of CBEC’s designation as WHO Collaborating Centre for Bioethics. During this visit, Dr. Reis also taught PGD and MBE students in the Research and Public Health Ethics Module.
CBEC’S 20TH ANNIVERSARY-A REASON FOR WHO TO CELEBRATE
Andreas Reis*
The year 2024 marks two decades since the establishment of the Center for Biomedical Ethics and Culture (CBEC) at the SIUT in Karachi, a commendable milestone worth celebrating.
Founded in 2004, the Center is not only one of the oldest and most prestigious institutions working on bioethics in the region, but it has developed an excellent reputation at an international level, with notable contributions in areas such as ethics of organ transplantation, research ethics, global health ethics, and clinical ethics.
It is the only Center in Pakistan and the Eastern Mediterranean Region dedicated to enhancing education and research in bioethics through formal degree programs in bioethics (offered free to make them accessible to everyone), constituting an extraordinary resource for Pakistan, the region, and the whole world. One of CBEC’s distinctive features – as indicated in its title – is its focus on exploring the intersection of culture and ethics, recognizing the significant role of cultural contexts in ethical reasoning.
The collaboration of the Centre with the World Health Organization (WHO) on health ethics reaches all the way back to its inception, as Professor Farhat Moazam, CBEC’s director, served on WHO Expert Groups on ethics of organ, tissue, and cell transplantation in 2003. Since then, CBEC has been intensifying its joint work with WHO, both with Geneva Headquarters as well as the Cairo Regional Office, in various areas. In recognition of its excellence and collaborations with WHO in diverse areas, the Centre was designated a WHO Collaborating Centre for Bioethics in 2017, making it the first one in the entire Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR).
The Global Network of Collaborating Centres on Bioethics was initiated in 2009 recognizing that many ethical issues are inherently global in nature, and in today’s world require a global understanding and joint response at an international level.
Since joining this Network and the WHO family in 2017, CBEC has been of key importance for WHO’s work in Bioethics. First, for WHO Headquarters at the global level, CBEC has been providing crucial contributions to the formulation of WHO guidance documents and policy frameworks, in areas such as ethics of emergencies and epidemics, fostering National Ethics Committees, research ethics, and organ and tissue transplantation. In doing so, it has been representing a unique regional perspective and voice and strengthening an intercultural approach to bioethics.
Furthermore, at the regional level, CBEC has been a key institution for fostering collaboration in bioethics, supporting the Research Ethics Committee, and providing a unique hub for educational and regional training initiatives in bioethics within the EMR. More recently, it has also been strengthening collaborations across regions, for example with Africa.
In summary, CBEC’s two-decade journey reflects a strong commitment to advancing bioethics education and research in Pakistan and beyond, with numerous contributions to global bioethical initiatives and partnerships – it is truly a unique Centre.
WHO owes deep gratitude to all the faculty members of CBEC for their expertise and their unremitting support in advancing WHO’s agenda on health ethics, with special thanks to the two co-leads of the WHO Collaborating Center, Professor Farhat Moazam and Professor Aamir Jafarey. It is hoped that in the next 20 years, CBEC will continue to thrive and deepen its collaboration with WHO.