Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has reiterated that Pakistan remained committed to working with the Commonwealth to promote its agenda of connectivity, education, youth and women empowerment, and climate resilience.

The deputy prime minister, addressing a joint press stakeout with Secretary General of the Commonwealth Patricia Scotland after their meeting in Islamabad on Monday, said Pakistan was also resolved to support the initiatives aimed at strengthening and modernizing the Commonwealth to meet the 21st-century challenges, besides continuing to play an active role in building bridges among member states.

He appreciated the secretary-general, who is on a five-day maiden visit to Pakistan, for serving the organisation with “dedication and grace” across her eight-year term and her role in promoting the Commonwealth’s values and mission and modernizing the outlook.

Dar lauded her contribution to promoting cooperation in education, youth empowerment, capacity building, and climate action, besides supporting Pakistan after floods, particularly regarding the appointment of a climate finance advisor for Pakistan.

Dar urged the Commonwealth’s role to resolve outstanding disputes among member states with greater urgency and press for implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions.

The minister said Pakistan’s vision of the regional connectivity agenda matched that of the Commonwealth. He highlighted the vast opportunities for collaboration in realizing goals in education, skills, youth and women empowerment, health, and environment preservation.

He told the visiting dignitary that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was looking forward to attending the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2024 scheduled to take place in Apia, Samoa in October. Dar said on the sidelines of the Commonwealth foreign ministers meeting in September, he would engage with the participating counterparts.

In her remarks, Secretary-General Patricia Scotland lauded Pakistan’s continued support of the Commonwealth particularly during her eight-year term. She told the media that she was visiting Pakistan to see and celebrate the way Pakistan had arisen from the devastating floods of 2022 that had affected more than 33 million Pakistanis with two million of them lost homes and livelihoods.

She appreciated Pakistan’s commitment to the Commonwealth principles as the organisation strived for a digitized and AI-enabled world. She said that 65% of Pakistan’s population under age 30 would not just be the leaders of tomorrow but would also help the Commonwealth create a better future.

To a question, Dar said Pakistan continued to uphold values like peace and development through dialogue and respecting independence and sovereignty. Pakistan sees the Commonwealth as a forum to forge consensus on pressing issues, he added.

He said that owing to its geostrategic location, Pakistan envisioned itself as a regional hub for trade as regional connectivity would create jobs for young people and create conditions for win-win cooperation. He also appreciated Secretary-General Patricia Scotland’s vision of increasing intra-Commonwealth trade to US$2 trillion by 2030.

Responding to a query, the secretary-general said the Commonwealth consisted of 2.7 billion people or one-third of the world. She said the trade with Commonwealth states was far faster, cheaper and easier than other countries.

To another question, she explained that the Commonwealth had been challenging and combating all forms of discrimination while mainstreaming fairness and equality for all including girls and women.