Newly appointed Australian High Commissioner to Pakistan Neil Hawkins on Tuesday called on Governor Punjab Muhammad Balighur Rehman and discussed cooperation in education, trade and environment besides matters of mutual interest.
Speaking on the occasion, Punjab Governor Muhammad Balighur Rehman said that Pakistan values its relations with Australia, adding that Australia had always stood by Pakistan in the hour of need.
He said the Pakistani diaspora living in Australia was playing a role in its development, adding that many Pakistani students were studying in Australian universities.
He hailed the Australian government for grant of scholarships to Pakistani students in the field of education.
Muhammad Balighur Rehman further said that trade between the two countries was increasing and Pakistan wanted to further expand trade relations with Australia.
The Governor Punjab said that the government had taken measures to empower women and to achieve this goal, women universities were established which had yielded encouraging results.
He told the Australian High Commissioner that as chancellor he was working on forming a consortium on environment to benefit from the research on environment by the universities.
They also talked about expediting the visa process for Pakistanis.
Australian High Commissioner Neil Hawkins said climate change was a big challenge for the whole world which required concerted efforts to deal with it.
The diplomat also assured of his cooperation on environmental challenges.
