ISLAMABAD, MAY 19 /DNA/ – Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar held a telephone discussion today with Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. 

 
The two Leaders discussed the robust bilateral relations between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, exploring various avenues for further strengthening cooperation across multiple sectors. This dialogue underscored the profound and enduring partnership between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

They reviewed preparations for the visit of the Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Al Saud to Pakistan. 

Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq  Dar underlined that people of Pakistan are eagerly looking forward to the visit of His Royal Highness at a mutually agreed date.

The Ministers also discussed the grave situation in Gaza and other pressing regional and global developments of mutual concern. The two sides reaffirmed dedication to fostering peace and stability in the region through collaborative efforts and dialogue.

ISLAMABAD, MAY 19 /DNA/ – The Foreign Minister of Türkiye, Hakan Fidan (@hakanfidan), has arrived in Islamabad for a two-day official visit. He was warmly received by Additional Foreign Secretary (Afghanistan & West Asia) Ambassador Ahmed Naseem Warraich.

During his visit, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and engage in comprehensive discussions with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar (@MIshaqDar50). The meetings will focus on reviewing the state of bilateral relations and preparing for upcoming high-level engagements between Türkiye and Pakistan.

RAWALPINDI, MAY 19 /DNA/ – General Angus J. Campbell, Chief of Defence Forces Australia, paid a visit to General Syed Asim Munir, NI (M), Chief of Army Staff (COAS), today. During their meeting, they engaged in discussions on matters of bilateral professional interest, with a particular focus on the global and regional security environment and cooperation between the two Armed Forces. Both parties expressed a mutual desire to further expand military-to-military cooperation.

The Australian Chief of Defence Forces expressed his admiration for the high professional standards maintained by the Pakistan Armed Forces, their notable achievements in the fight against terrorism, and their continued efforts to promote regional peace and stability.

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KARACHI, MAY 19: Pakistan Banks’ Association (PBA) held a meeting with the Federal Minister for Finance & Revenue, Muhammad Aurangzeb. The meeting focused on enhancing support by the banks for the three key sectors of Agriculture, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), and Digital & Technology in Pakistan. The discussion underlined the banking sector’s commitment to fostering financial inclusion in the Country. 

Federal Minister mentioned at the outset that the idea of this exercise shall be to encourage the entire sector to contribute towards these priority sectors as per their size and unique offerings & strengths. While there will be no “directed lending”; however, there shall be voluntary targets to be set between the banks and the regulator to share the responsibility to contribute towards these critical sectors. He expects the banks to step up and continue to work with the Government in the revival and the growth of the economy. 

During the session, Chairman PBA, Zafar Masud, along with the Steering Committee members on these initiatives, including Vice Chairman PBA, Ahmed Bozai, CEO & SG PBA, Muneer Kamal, Executive Director (Financial Inclusion Group) State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Syed Irfan Ali, and President & CEO Meezan Bank, Irfan Siddiqui, presented a comprehensive set of recommendations aimed at promoting growth and sustainability in these vital sectors. The proposals were developed in close consultation with SBP to ensure they effectively address the unique challenges and highlight the opportunities within each sector.

The key recommendations in the agriculture sector included, among other steps, restructuring crop loan insurance schemes to integrate crop yield factors, revitalizing agricultural cooperative banks and upgrading provincial agricultural cooperative legislations to facilitate the creation of agricultural cooperative lending institutions. The recommendations also included exploring technology-driven solutions to facilitate the distribution of targeted subsidies through banks, particularly to the subsistence-level farmers, similar to BISP, to promote much-needed financial inclusion.

Similarly, it was resolved in the meeting that banks get actively involved in providing financial and management support to entities such as the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) and National Credit Guarantee Company Limited (NCGCL).  The Minister was apprised that PBA and SBP are actively engaged to revising SME Prudential Regulations, enhancing clean financing limits, and reviewing regulatory retail portfolio limits to facilitate SME financing.

The Minister was informed that PBA is contemplating to establish “SME and Agriculture Index” to target the customers currently outside the documented economy while also enhancing credit risk management.

On the Digital & Technology front, PBA recommended facilitating retail foreign investment through digital micro sukuks/infra bonds and integrating freelancers into payment gateways. It was also proposed to enhance foreign remittance flows via specially developed online portals for overseas Pakistanis. It was emphasized that the banks be allowed to offer products and services in technology space, currently only used for their own operations, to the outside world to harness export flows.  The recommendations related to documentation of the economy through the use of technology were also discussed, and outlined the role that the banks will play in furthering Government’s efforts in this respect. 

The Minister commended PBA’s Steering Committee, and the respective Task Forces for the three identified priority sector, for their thorough analysis and valuable recommendations. He highlighted the crucial role of the banking community in driving economic growth. He stressed upon the banks to enhance their efforts in supporting these priority sectors to foster economic development and prosperity. The Minister consented on the governance structure for the implementation of the proposed recommendations by PBA, jointly with SBP and the Ministry of Finance & Revenue, spearheaded by him and the Governor SBP. 

“PBA and its members are fully committed to working closely with the Ministry of Finance and the SBP to implement these recommendations and ensuring effective contribution of the banking sector to Pakistan’s economic prosperity.” Commented Zafar Masud, Chairman – PBA at the end of the meeting.

LAHORE, May 19 (DNA): Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday contacted Ambassador of Pakistan in the Kyrgyz Republic Hassan Ali Zaigham and directed him for making necessary arrangements for a special flight being sent to Bishkek this evening to bring back Pakistani students.

The special aeroplane will bring back 130 students to Pakistan on Sunday night, PM Office Media Wing said in a press release.  

At the instructions of the prime minister, the government of Pakistan will bear all the expenses of the special plane.

The prime minister directed for keeping continuous contacts with all the students and their families, emphasising that the return of injured students should be a priority.

He further asked for bringing back those students back whose families were residing with them in Kyrgyzstan on urgent basis.  

The ambassador of Pakistan Zaigham apprised the prime minister of his meeting with the Kyrgyz deputy foreign minister. According to Kyrgyz authorities, the situation was under control and no new incident of violence took place in the last two days. Security measures had been enhanced and the foreign students including Pakistanis were safe.

The prime minister directed that despite return of normalcy in Bishkek, those students should be facilitated who wanted to return to Pakistan.  

A number of students have already returned from Kyrgyzstan on Sunday via commercial fli

ISLAMABAD, MAY 18 /DNA/ – Not arms, but critical thinking, unity, and passion for change can drive the youth of this region forward. They need to have an inquisitive mind to question socio-economic injustices. These remarks were made by Ambassador Durrani, Pakistan’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan, addressing a gathering of Afghan and Pakistani youth leaders, hosted by the Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) as part of Pak-AfghanYouth Peace Initiative – Building Bridges, Improving Perceptions.

The envoy urged the youth from both sides to take an active role in regional development by focusing on their education, skills, and personal growth as they are the future leaders of the countries.

Regarding the sociopolitical situation in Afghanistan, he said that the pursuit of common interests in a fair socio-political environment is intrinsically linked to unity. By fostering solidarity, empathy, and collaboration, Afghans, especially the youth, can create a more just, developed, and equitable nation where everyone has the opportunity to thrive and contribute to the greater good. The youth of Afghanistan has the opportunity to change Afghanistan’s decades-long label of ‘conflict zone’ and take an active part in nation-building.

The participating Afghan youth voiced their concerns on the issues facing the education landscape in Afghanistan, particularly for females, the delays in visa issuance for Afghan students studying in Pakistan, as well as the challenges faced by those who have to return to Afghanistan due to their illegal status or expiration of the visa.

Mehnaz Akbar Aziz, former MNA, also joined the discussion where she underscored the significant role youth dialogues play in fostering unity between Pakistan and Afghanistan and that engaging the youth from both nations is crucial for bridging diplomatic gaps and building mutual understanding. She highlighted opportunities for youth engagement, such as academic exchanges and collaborative projects, which can help bridge diplomatic gaps.

A vital point of her address was the importance of supporting women’s education and their involvement in politics and law in both countries. She drew attention to the economic and psychosocial challenges faced by Afghan women as education remains banned for them in the country. Mehnaz lauded Pakistan’s efforts in educating Afghan refugees and shared statistics, noting that currently, 1.4 million Afghan refugees reside in Pakistan, with 50,000 enrolled in primary education. She stressed the importance of continued support for Afghan refugee youth’s education in Pakistan and urged the international community to help Pakistan create a more enabling academic environment for them.

The executive director CRSS, Imtiaz Gul noted that with the tons of information available in the offline and online space, youth have a huge onus to critically evaluate every bit of information they come across for its authenticity before disseminating it.

Elsa Imdad, CRSS research fellow and Global UGRAD alumna, concluded that Track III engagements and youth participation are only effective if the Track I stakeholders take ownership of such efforts and give agency to youth in the policymaking.

The forum concluded with policy recommendations aimed at fostering better relations, such as establishing educational corridors to empower women and ensuring their involvement in decision-making. They also suggested forming youth committees to address common challenges and prioritized collaboration over discord in diplomatic efforts. Additionally, there was a call for increased youth engagement for peace and unity and for promoting political maturity among young leaders. Strengthening academic exchanges and addressing longstanding issues in trade and transit – which are one of the major issues causing bad blood and negative perceptions – were seen as crucial steps.

The Pak-Afghan Youth Peace Initiative is a track III diplomacy effort supported by the US State Department, Global UGRAD Pakistan, and IREX. This initiative aims to foster goodwill and improve public perceptions between Pakistani and Afghan youth through dialogue, interactive workshops, community engagement, meetings with key stakeholders to discuss practical aspects of enhancing youth diplomacy and media interactions.=DNA

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