In continuation of the Francophonie festivities in Islamabad, the promotion ceremony of the "French Online Programme in the Northern Areas" and the programme "ICT for Rural Development in Mountainous and Remote Areas of Northern Pakistan", was held at Comsats Headquarters.
The event was co-organised by the Commission on Science and Technology for Sustainable Development in the South (Comsats), the Embassy of France and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada.
The Canadian High Commissioner, H.E. Margaret Huber presided over the session. Delivering her keynote address, H.E. Huber highlighted the role of IDRC in the financial sponsorship of the programme "ICT for Rural Development in Mountainous and Remote Areas of Northern Pakistan".
She mentioned that in Pakistan, the development aid contribution of IDRC can be found in more than 60 projects with a total value of more than dollar CA 20 million.
H.E. Huber also appreciated the efforts of the collaborative partners of the programme, namely Comsats, Karakoram Area Development Organisation (Kado), Baltistan Health and Education Foundation (BH&EF) and Agha Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP), for the realisation and implementation of this programme.
Earlier, Dr Hameed Ahmed Khan H.I.,S.I., Executive Director, Comsats welcomed the honourable guests and emphasised the role of Information Communication Technologies in national development.
He also elaborated Comsats' collaborative programmes with international and national organisations and said that the technology platform for both the subject programmes is being provided by the Commission. Professor Dr Syed Altaf Hussain, Vice Chancellor, AIOU said that learning French can be very beneficial for Pakistanis, especially remote area residents, because this can open the doors of the Francophonie world for them.
During her keynote address, Ms. Francoise Maylie, Chargee D' Affaires, Embassy of France greeted the gathering on the auspicious occasion of Francophonie and highlighted the role of French language in the transfer of knowledge and technology.
Apprising the guests of the status of French Online, she said that more than 600 learners have already enrolled in the programme, while the target for the year 2004 is approximately 1,000.
She also applauded the contribution of partner organisations of French Online, which is a programme sponsored by the Embassy of France and is a joint venture between Alliance Francaise, Comsats and Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU).
Dr Ouafae Sananes, Project Co-ordinator, Embassy of France delivered a comprehensive presentation highlighting the features of French Online programme, which was followed by an interactive session via Video Conferencing with the French Online students in Gilgit.