The Fourth Session of Alexandria Dialogues Forum at the BA
Posted on
The Bibliotheca Alexandrina launched yesterday the fourth session of its Alexandria Dialogues Forum, under the title "The Knowledge Society in the Arab and International Sphere… Its Components and Future Prospects”, in cooperation with the Consulate General of Lebanon in Alexandria. The session was delivered by the Lebanese social researcher Prof. Massoud Daher, and moderated by Prof. Ahmed Zayed, Director of the BA.
Dr. Ahmed Zayed said that the knowledge society topic is crucial, as the competition between countries is currently not limited to building wealth and economic development, but is rather based on the possession of a huge wealth of knowledge and technology, together with the application of innovative and creative ideas.
He also highlighted the indicators of some of the problems facing the Arab world in this respect, including the quality and efficiency of education, and the digital society and the use of the Internet in building knowledge frameworks, stressing that this topic is of particular importance, and that governments must pay attention to it.
At the beginning of his speech, Dr. Massoud Daher stated that the knowledge society is the product of the positive interaction between heritage and modern culture. With regard to the knowledge society in the Arab sphere, he referenced the experience of Muhammad Ali Pasha, or the “Egyptian Experience” as it is called, which presented a highly significant model in the modernization of Egypt and the Levant decades before the onset of the modernization phase in Japan.
In addition, he emphasized the important role of the creative Arab youth in building a modern society through which Arab culture can be renewed. He also addressed the possibilities of competition between human and artificial intelligence.