Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz reiterated Pakistan's desire to have a cooperative relationship with Afghanistan, defined by confidence and mutual trust here on Wednesday. Speaking at a ceremony for Afghan Students under HEC's project titled "Award of 3,000 Scholarships to Afghan Students on PM's Directive," the adviser said that Pakistan has a strong desire to strengthen relations with its neighbouring countries and it attaches special emphasis on Pak-Afghan relations.
He said that mutually beneficial relationship between countries is critical to promote peace and stability in the South Asia and broader region. Despite various challenges, he pointed out that the relationship between Pakistan and Afghanistan has continued to grow through people-to-people contacts and trade for decades. A partnership cultivated on the basis of socio-economic development is the way forward, he added.
"We also look forward to a relationship with Afghanistan that is defined by confidence and mutual trust and that encompasses many areas of cooperation to enable both countries to grow together," he emphasised.
The adviser said that the government of Pakistan is also fully committed to taking necessary steps to ensure that Afghanistan comes out of the challenges so that it can emerge on an international stage as progressive and peaceful nation. "That is why we are looking forward to an all-encompassing relationship, from people-to-people contacts to government-to-government relations," he added.
He pointed out that the relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan in the field of education date back to late 1970s when Pakistan wholeheartedly welcomed millions of Afghan refugees in Pakistan during the jihad era. During the past 4 decades, he added, thousands of these refugee students have been receiving their education in Pakistani schools and universities.
In addition, he added that the commonalities of culture and ethnicity make Pakistan an attractive destination of higher education for Afghan students. "This is evident from the fact that Pakistan hosts the largest number of Afghan students studying abroad. More than 48,000 Afghan graduates from Pakistani educational institutions are serving in various Afghan institutions in public and private sectors. We are proud of this contribution to Afghanistan's progress. These Afghans are an asset for Pakistan and our ambassadors in their home country," he added.
He also described the award of scholarships to Afghan students a significant "milestone" in the bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries. "I hope that this collaboration on various strategic fronts will continue to grow, as from past decades on a countless occasions, two countries have shown interest and made tangible efforts to upscale the ties in a meaningful manner," he added.
The adviser pointed out that Pakistan took the initiative of offering scholarships to Afghan students and in 2010 launched the Prime Minister's Scholarship scheme in the field of higher education for Afghan students.
To date, he added that 2,912 scholarships have been availed from a total of 3,000. These scholarships have been granted for education in the fields of medicine, engineering, computer science, banking and finance, he said, adding the scholarships have been offered for education in leading higher education institutions and state-of-the-art universities including LUMS, IBA and COMSATS.
He told that the Prime Minister has approved another 3,000 scholarships under our new bilateral assistance package of $500 million for Afghanistan announced at Brussels Conference in October 2016. This would enable more Afghan students to be enrolled in Pakistani academic institutions and seek education in more diversified fields, he added.
Comments
Comments are closed.