I S L A M A B A D : Acknowledging that social media has threatened privacy, the speakers at a seminar on Monday did not deny its importance, saying with the passage of time it would become biggest communication tool to hold public debate and get feedback about different projects and issues.

The seminar on `Promoting Development Discourse through Social Media` was organised by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) on Monday.

Media Analyst Raza Rumi said that organizations working on different projects especially for the welfare of the community can get feedback through this medium.

`Social media is being used for public debates on various social, political and economic issues,` Mr Rumi said.

`Most interestingly politicians have also started using social media to give guideline to their followers,` he said.He said that policy makers and donors have also started using this medium to get feedback on their policies and projects.

Strategic Communications Director Amena Kamaal said social media was biggest threat to ones privacy. `If this aspect is not addressed properly it can cause bad effects on business concerns` organisational goals,` she said.

Deputy Director SDPI Dr Vaqar Ahmed while talking about the NGOs interest in social media said it is not limited to using Facebook and Twitter.

`The media can be used for online educational programme. Salman Khan Online Academy which is a free online educational programme is the best example in this regard,` he said.

Anthropologist and social behavior analyst Shirin Gul said that people should be given awareness of the fruits of social media and its uses and business organisations should also do preparation before using this medium.