Abas Basir (; born 1968) is an Afghan academic and politician who served as the Minister of Higher Education from 14 September 2020 to 15 August 2021. He also held various significant national and international posts. He has served as Director General of South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP) who was nominated by the Government of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan for a term of three years, from August 2018 to September 2020. Dr. Abas Basir was also appointed as Deputy for South Asia Neutregeon Hub between the years 2019–2020. From 2015–2018 he served as higher adviser to the Afghan president

Ashraf Ghani Mohammad Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai (born 19 May 1949) is an Afghan former politician and economist who served as the president of Afghanistan from September 2014 until August 2021, when his government was 2021 Taliban offensive, overthrown by the Ta ...

. Before that from 2012 to 2014 he served as chief of staff to the Afghan vice president. He also served as deputy director general, National Environmental protection Agency from 2010 to 2012. Also worked as acting director of International Cultural Relations Directorate in the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Afghanistan) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (MoFA) (, ) is the cabinet ministry responsible for managing the foreign relations of Afghanistan. On 11 January 2023, the ministry was bombed. It would again be bombed on ...

. And along with the mentioned positions, Abas Basir has always tried to support higher education in Afghanistan: he served as a lecturer for almost 7 years, from 2011 to 2018, at both

master's A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

and

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education, usually in a college or university. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, ...

levels, teaching environmental sciences and

water management Water resources are natural resources of water that are potentially useful for humans, for example as a source of drinking water supply or irrigation water. These resources can be either freshwater from natural sources, or water produced artificia ...

studies at different universities in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

, such as Kateb, Dawat, Ibn e Sina,

Dunya University of Afghanistan Dunya University of Afghanistan is a private university established in 2009 in Kabul, Afghanistan in partnership with the Swiss UMEF University. Swiss UMEF is accredited by the Swiss higher education authorities. Dunya University was founded by G ...

, Gharjestan and Gawharshad. Abas Basir is a well-known Afghan Diplomat who has Master of International law and Ph.D. in international environment law from

Jawaharlal Nehru University Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU; ISO: Javāharalāla Neharū Viśvavidyālaya) is a public research university located in Delhi, India. It was established in 1969 and named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister. The university ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. During 2006–2009 that Basir worked as First Deputy for the Afghanistan Embassy in New Delhi. He has also held position as Deputy and Head of cultural affairs department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs between the years 2003–2006. Worked as a vice president for the Afghanistan National Constitution in Tehran, Iran, and as a senior representative from Ghazni Province for the Afghanistan LoyeJerga (National Assembly). Abas Basir is also nationally recognized as a writer and editor in chief for the Musharekat E Meli (National Cooperation) weekly Magazine between the years 2002–2005 as well as Emroz e Ma (Our Time) in

Peshawar, Pakistan Peshawar is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district population of over 4.7 million in the 2023 census. It is situated in the north-west o ...

(1996–2000).

Early life and education

Abas Basir son of Ghulam Hassan was born in 1968 in the Qarabagh,

Ghazni Ghazni (, ), historically known as Ghaznayn () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana (), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan with a population of around 190,000 people. The city is strategica ...

, Afghanistan. He belongs to the Hazara ethnic group. He has the following education degrees: *Bachelor's degree in Islamic Education and science fro
International Centre for Islamic Studies
Iran 1992. *Master's degree from International Center for Islamic Studies in Law and Islamic Education, Iran 2003. *Master of International law from

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

*Ph.D. in International Environment Law from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India 2012

Career

South Asia Co-operative Environment Program

It is also known as SACEP, as per the Articles of Association of the organization. SACEP is an Inter-governmental organization, established in 1982 by the Governments of

South Asia South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...

to promote and support protection, management and enhancement of the environment in the region. Eight member countries, namely: *

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

Bhutan Bhutan, officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked country in South Asia, in the Eastern Himalayas between China to the north and northwest and India to the south and southeast. With a population of over 727,145 and a territory of , ...

Maldives The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as the Maldive Islands, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in South Asia located in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is southwest of Sri Lanka and India, abou ...

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

these countries have ratified the Articles of Association of SACEP. It is also registered with secretariat of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

as a Multilateral Organization in accordance with Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations. SACEP is also the Secretariat for the South Asian Seas Programme (SASP) which is one of the eighteen Regional Seas Programmes of United Nations Environment Programme. Government of Sri Lanka has hosted the Organization and SACEP has its secretariat in Colombo which is enlisted as a Specialized Agency under the Diplomatic Missions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka.
Abas Basir has served as Director General of South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP) who was nominated by the Government of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan for a term of three years. With the able leadership of Basir, the 15th Meeting of the

Governing Council A personal ordinariate for former Anglicans, shortened as personal ordinariate or Anglican ordinariate,"Bishop Stephen Lopes of the Anglican Ordinariate of the Chair of St Peter..." is a canonical structure within the Catholic Church establish ...

(GC) of SACEP and the 6th Inter-governmental Meeting of

Ministers Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

of the South Asian Seas Programme (SASP) was held from 3 – 6 November 2019 in

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

. During the period of serving as the Director General of the organization, the partnership between The

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...

and

Parley for the Oceans Parley for the Oceans is a Nonprofit organization, nonprofit environmental organization that focuses on protection of the oceans. It was founded in 2012 by Cyrill Gutsch. Background Before founding Parley for the Oceans, Cyrill Gutsch worked as ...

is historically remarkable. Under this partnership the World Bank's Board of Executive Directors approved a US$50 million Plastic free Rivers and Seas for South Asia regional project with Regional IDA Grant support of US$37 million and with US$13 million parallel financing by Parley for the Oceans to be implemented by SACEP. During this period the SACEP Strategy 2020 – 2030 was developed and approved by the Governing Council. Also, the following are the strategic documents adopted by the Governing Council of SACEP to be implemented Nationally and Regionally which was developed through a series of workshops organized by SACEP in participation of the Member States of SACEP and SASP. *Regional Marine Litter Action Plan for

*Regional Marine and Coastal Biodiversity Strategy for the South Asian Seas Region *A Roadmap for Sustainable Waste Management and Resources Circulation in South Asia, 2019–2030 *Roadmap towards South Asia Nitrogen Framework Policy. Abas Basir also held various significant other posts, he served as a senior advisor to the

Afghan President The president of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was constitutionally the head of state and head of government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and Commander-in-Chief of the Afghan Armed Forces. Eligibility and selection process Ar ...

and was a

Lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

in environment and

studies in

at a variety of

universities A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

, teaching both at Masters and Undergraduate levels. He also worked as the acting director of the International Cultural Relations Directorate,

, Deputy Director General of the National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA), Afghanistan and Chief of Staff at the Afghan Vice President Office. He has also served as an Afghan Diplomat. As a highly pragmatic individual with the ability to take initiatives in resolving problems, he balances professional and personal development through reflective practice.
During this time and before, he had also experienced working with civil society organizations particularly those involved in environment protection activities. He authored many publications in the fields of environment law and policy. One of his published books on environment law is now used as a text book by the universities as well as CSOs in Afghanistan. During his career, he was mostly involved in developing and applying environmental law and policy and also public awareness.
During and before joining SACEP, Abas Basir has participated in many national and international

conferences A conference is a meeting, often lasting a few days, which is organized on a particular subject, or to bring together people who have a common interest. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always d ...

and

workshops Beginning with the Industrial Revolution era, a workshop may be a room, rooms or building which provides both the area and tools (or machinery) that may be required for the manufacture or repair of manufactured goods. Workshops were the only ...

. He has attended the following

United Nations Climate Change conference The United Nations Climate Change Conferences are yearly conferences held in the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). They serve as the formal meeting of the UNFCCC parties – the conference of the par ...

COP and some other Conferences: *UNFCCC COP 25 *UNFCCC COP 24, Katowice *UNFCCC COP 16, as the Head of Afghan Delegation. *UNFCCC COP 15. *UNFCCC COP 12. *BONN Climate Change Talks, 2–6 Aug 2010, Bonn, Germany. *BONN Climate Change Talks, 31 May-11 June 2010, Bonn, Germany. *

South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is the regional intergovernmental organization and geopolitical union of states in South Asia. Its member states are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, ...

(SAARC) second Inter-Governmental Expert Group Meeting. March 2010, Kathmandu. *

(SAARC) First Inter-Governmental Expert Group Meeting. January 2010, New Delhi. *

(SAARC) Environment Ministers Eight Meeting, Oct 2009, New Delhi. *participated at IOCINDO-VII, Hyderabad, India June 2019. *Third sub-Regional workshop on Preparation of status Report and sub-regional Roadmap for Implementing the Global Waste Management Goals toward Addressing SDGs in South Asia.

Publication

Books

Basir has many

publications To publish is to make Content (media), content available to the general public.Berne Conv ...

in the field of

environment law Environmental laws are laws that protect the environment. The term "environmental law" encompasses treaties, statutes, regulations, conventions, and policies designed to protect the natural environment and manage the impact of human activities ...

and

policy Policy is a deliberate system of guidelines to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent and is implemented as a procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by a governance body within an or ...

. now one of his

books A book is a structured presentation of recorded information, primarily verbal and graphical, through a medium. Originally physical, electronic books and audiobooks are now existent. Physical books are objects that contain printed material, mo ...

is used as a

textbook A textbook is a book containing a comprehensive compilation of content in a branch of study with the intention of explaining it. Textbooks are produced to meet the needs of educators, usually at educational institutions, but also of learners ( ...

in different

and CSOs. * Liability for Environmental Damage with Special Reference to

Armed Conflicts War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organize ...

*Legal Framework for

environment protection Environmental protection, or environment protection, refers to the taking of measures to protecting the natural environment, prevent pollution and maintain ecological balance. Action may be taken by individuals, advocacy groups and governments. ...

during

Armed Conflict War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

*Integrated Environment Management from the

International law International law, also known as public international law and the law of nations, is the set of Rule of law, rules, norms, Customary law, legal customs and standards that State (polity), states and other actors feel an obligation to, and generall ...

prospective. *

Elections An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...

of the Constitutional Loya Jirga *Election Management with a view on the International and

Experiences.

Articles

*Environmental consequences of corona outbreak. *

Trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...

and Environment. *

Climate Change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...

, Impacts and Remedies *

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

and Environment. *

Financial Mechanism. *Us Exit from Paris Agreement. *World Efforts to Rescue The

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

. *Designing a

Sustainable Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...

City. And more than 200 other Articles.

References

External links

Minister of Higher Education: Abas BasirBiography: Abas Basir
{{DEFAULTSORT:Basir, Abas Living people Higher education ministers of Afghanistan 1968 births Hazara politicians Jawaharlal Nehru University alumni