Zubair Qureshi
The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on Thursday agreed to collaborate in diverse sectors of education including science and technology, agriculture, health and ICT.
This was agreed upon during a meeting between Ethiopian Ambassador Jemal Beker Abdula and Chairman of the Higher Education Commission (HEC) Dr Mukhtar Ahmed who visited the ambassador at his office in the Ethiopian embassy.
Both of them discussed the modalities to advance mutual cooperation in the education sector to exchange knowledge, skills and expertise.
Ambassador Jemal said the Ethiopian government was keen to strengthen the already flourishing bilateral ties between the two nations through education diplomacy.
“Collaboration in the education sector can be instrumental for establishing long-lasting and sustainable relations between the two countries,” he said while recalling the eagerness of the Ethiopian medical experts, who studied from Pakistani universities, to visit Pakistan to help those who were affected by flash floods in 2022.
He said a delegation from a top class university in Ethiopia had visited Pakistan in 2023 that showed there is a strong appetite in Ethiopia for establishing institution-to-institution collaboration between the two countries.
The ambassador briefed the HEC Chairman on a plantation campaign led by the Ethiopian Embassy Islamabad in collaboration with the Ministry of Climate Change, universities, civil society and business community across Pakistan under the Green Legacy Initiative of H.E. Dr. Abiy Ahmed, Prime Minister of Ethiopia, for fostering fraternity between the two great nations.
On the other hand, the Chairman of HEC briefed the Ambassador on advancement and digitalization in the education sector that included the establishment of digital libraries and smart classrooms giving access to education to millions of students in Pakistan and abroad.
He assured the Ambassador of all-out support for strengthening cooperation and collaboration in the education sector between Ethiopia and Pakistan.
The HEC chairman also extended an invitation to the Ambassador to visit the HEC Headquarters and also requested for facilitating delegations exchange between the two countries for furthering collaboration in the education sector.
“Let us help each other in the education sector for building strong nations together for global prosperity,” he remarked.
He informed the Ambassador about the opening of the Global Engagement Department at HEC which would have a desk for Africa with special focus on Ethiopia.
