The Embassy of Pakistan in Dushanbe organized a Roundtable titled “Pakistan’s Chairmanship of the SCO Council of Heads of Government: Innovations, Investment, Transport, Connectivity, and Poverty Alleviation” at the SCO Friendship and Cooperation Center in Dushanbe, today.

Senior government officials, Ambassadors of SCO countries, academia, and representatives of media attended the Roundtable.

Video messages from Ms. Sarah Saeed, Special Secretary, Ministry of Commerce, Pakistan; and Ambassador Sohail Khan, SCO Deputy Secretary General were screened during the event.

The other speakers included Deputy Transport Minister of Tajikistan; Head of SCO Division at Tajikistan’ Foreign Ministry; and Ambassadors of China, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, Uzbekistan, and Belarus. They shared their perspective on fostering cooperation among SCO member states in socio-economic, trade, and investment sectors.

Ambassador Muhammad Saeed Sarwar, in his remarks, outlined Pakistan’s priorities as Chair of SCO Council of Heads of Government (CHG), which included a) connectivity and transportation infrastructure; b) empowerment of youth; c) investment in sectors with significant regional potential such as agriculture, mining, minerals, energy, and information technology; and d) poverty alleviation.

Ambassador Sarwar reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to the founding principles of the Organization which places a strong emphasis on mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diverse civilizations, and the pursuit of shared development.

To recall, Pakistan assumed the Chair of the SCO Council of Heads of Government for 2023-24 in October 2023. The SCO CHG is the second highest forum within the Organization, which deals primarily with the trade and economic agenda.

The Roundtable was organized in collaboration with Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan and Academy of Public Administration.

Dushanbe

05 March 2024