MEETING OCCUR BETWEEN THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO PAKISTAN) AND INTERNATIONAL PARLIAMENTARIAN’S CONGRESS ON THE ISSUE OF ROAD SAFETY
Ms. Dr Maryam Mallick, Technical Advisor Disabilities, Road Safety, And Injury Prevention of World Health Organization Pakistan visited IPC. A fruitful meeting was held between Dr. Maryam Mallick from WHO-Pakistan and Mr. Ijlal Ali Khan IPC to discuss a number of areas of mutual interest including the various aspects of road safety and its implementation. Similarly, both sides addressed the issues of disabilities and its connection with lack of road safety. Moreover, they shared the desire to work on road safety on various levels to make sure maximum coordination and cooperation in the future together. They also assured cooperation to contain disabilities by effective road safety. Road safety is getting immense significance day by day not only nationally but internationally as well, therefore, the collective efforts between the two organizations will have tremendous significance regarding the said topic.
Djibouti Visit Report and Message of the President, IPC
Djibouti is a country in East Africa which by its geographical location, connects the Indian Ocean to the Red Sea, is pivotal to intercontinental trade. It is considered as the gateway to the Horn of Africa & other East African countries giving it strategic importance. In 2017, the state of Pakistan initiated its ‘Look Africa Policy’ under the intention to further deepen its historical and political ties with the states in Africa by expanding its diplomatic missions across and instituting trade activities that are mutually beneficial for all stakeholder involved. The vision behind the ‘Look Africa Policy’ is not only strategic but also has the intent of human development and prosperity as its foundation. The IPC is a transnational network of parliamentarians who have joined hands to play a proactive role in promoting peace and sustainable development through cooperation and dialogue. The IPC aims to make collective efforts for strengthening democracy across the world by creating synergies among parliamentarians. The agenda of IPC is not limited to the strengthening of democracy, the IPC intends to bring together MPs to make collective efforts for human development and prosperity. The Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Republic of Djibouti had very limited diplomatic and trade interaction in history although both states hold tremendous potential in the context. Hence, keeping in mind Pakistan’s ‘Look Africa Policy Initiative’, the International Parliamentarians Congress (IPC) invited Honorable Mohamed Ali Houmed, President of National Assembly of the Republic of Djibouti to Pakistan, which he graciously accepted. The purpose behind the invitation was not only diplomatic but also to introduce IPC and its work to Honorable Mohamed Ali Houmed. Following the invitation Honorable Mohamed Ali Houmed arrived in Pakistan along with his 7-member delegation. The delegation during their stay in Pakistan met with all important stakeholders of the state and discussed the matter of mutual interest. It is with deep honor and pleasure that I state that the visit was highly successful and proved to be canonical in starting a new chapter of the Djibouti-Pakistan relationship. The delegation from Djibouti during their stay extended an invitation to IPC to visit Djibouti following which a three-member delegation of IPC visited the Republic of Djibouti in January 2021. The visit by IPC delegation was the first official visit of a Pakistani delegation to the Republic. During the visit, the delegation had the opportunity to meet top government office-bearers as well as the Djiboutian Naval force. I take the opportunity to present this report, which states down the details of IPC visit to the Republic of Djibouti and the matters discussed therein. Senator Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani President International Parliamentarians’ Congress (IPC) Note: The report is available to download under the reports and publication section.
The three-member delegation from Pakistan Met the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Budget, and Commerce of the Republic of Djibouti.
On day one, after meeting the Honorable President of Arab Parliament Honorable Mr. M. Adel Bin Abdoul Rahman Al Hassoumi, the three-member delegation met Minister of Foreign affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Djibouti, honorable Mr. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, the Minister of Budget Mr. Abdoulkarim Aden Cher and the Minister of Commerce/Trade Mr. Hassan Houmed Ibrahim. Minister of Foreign Affair of the Republic of Djibouti shared that Djibouti is very ambitious to become a hub for the region and even beyond. They are developing infrastructure and emphasized the significance of strengthening the bilateral ties with Pakistan. He also talked about the importance of the road and belt initiative and said it is important to have a direct line between Pakistan and Djibouti for trade. They see Pakistan as a vibrant country with a growing economy and stated that Djibouti and Pakistan both states have the potential to work together towards development with corporation and unity. They appreciated the role of the International Parliamentarians’ Congress (IPC) by mentioning that the pandemic COVID-19 has already shaken the world and the countries started moving towards isolation and the following protectionism. During this time, IPC is creating solidarity between us and the other countries and strengthening the foundation of a mutual understanding system. Secretary-General International Parliamentarians’ Congress (IPC) Senator Mohammad Ali Saif and Senator Mirza Mohammad Afridi talked about the bilateral expansion of trade between Djibouti and Pakistan and also requested for the exemption of Visa to official passports for Djibouti. Moreover, Djibouti is planning to open a Pakistan embassy in Djibouti. Coverage in Local News
Pakistan Navy ship “NASR” reaches Djibouti carrying 50 metric ton rice for calamity-hit people. Honorable Secretary-General International Parliamentarians’ Congress (IPC) Senator Mohammad Ali Saif joined the event in Djibouti.
Pakistan Navy Ship “NASR” Friday arrived in Djibouti on a Port Call carrying a full load of 50 metric ton rice for calamity-hit people of Republic of Djibouti.To grace this event, the three-member delegation from Pakistan that includes Honorable Secretary-General International Parliamentarians’ Congress (IPC) Senator Mohammad Ali Saif, Senator Mirza Mohammad Afridi, along with Mr. FayazThaheem, Manager Procurement, and Coordination IPC joined the event. Honorable Mr. Mohamed Ali Houmed,the President of the National Assembly of Republic of Djibouti welcomed the visit of PNS “NASR” to Djibouti and thanked the Government of Pakistan for the support. “NASR” is a replenishment ship serving Pakistan Navy since 1987. In this event Honorable Secretary-General IPC Senator Mohammad Ali Saif presented souvenirs to the Coastguard Chief of Djibouti and to the Commodore Shafqat Hussain Akhtar SI (M), Commander 9th Auxiliary Warfare Squadron, who led the PNS “NASR” ship. The PNS “NASR” is visiting to deliver food, as humanitarian assistance, to the people of Djibouti affected by catastrophic floods, droughts and influx of refugees from across the Gulf of Aden. The ship will continue its voyage to circumnavigate the African continent aimed to build the image of Pakistan through goodwill visits among major Horn and West African counties including Sudan, Benin, Niger and Kenya.