French Embassy in Pakistan – Page 2

October 9, 2014

Launch of Social Sciences Open Doors Program

Karachi, October 09, 2014 (PPI-OT): The Embassy of France in Pakistan and the Alliance Française de Karachi are starting a Social Sciences Open Doors program. Monthly meetings will be organized in the framework of this program for promoting intellectual relations between Pakistan and France and initiating a dialogue between the research scholars, thinkers, writers, journalists of the two countries on topics of current interest in the field of contemporary social sciences.

Every month a guest-speaker from France will participate in the discussion-sessions organized at the Alliance Française in Karachi, in collaboration with partner universities or research centers.

For introducing this program, a press briefing will be held on Thursday, October 9, 2014 at 4 pm at Karachi Press Club with the participation of Mr. Franck Mermier (anthropologist), Ms. Noha Sadek (Historian of Islamic art) and Martine Herlem-Hamidi (Counselor for Cooperation and Cultural Affairs, Embassy of France in Islamabad).

For more information, contact:
Aqeel Hussain SYED
French Embassy in Pakistan
French Embassy – Diplomatic Enclave G5 – GPO
Box 1068 Islamabad
Telephone: 00 92 51 201 14 14
Fax: 201 14 80 / 201 14 00
Website: www.ambafrance-pk.org

May 29, 2014

Visit to France of a high-level Pakistani trade delegation

Islamabad, May 29, 2014 (PPI-OT): The Embassy of France in Islamabad in close cooperation of PBC (Pakistan Business Council), PFBA (Pakistan France Business Alliance), Pakistan France Business Council (PFBC) and the Embassy of Pakistan in Paris is constituting a trade delegation to Paris, France from 2 – 5 June 2014.

The program is being carried out under the supervision of MEDEF International (French Business Council) with the cooperation of Ubifrance (French Trade Promotion Agency).

The Pakistani Minister for water and Power M. Muhammad Asif KHAWAJA has consented to join the delegation to Paris as well as, the special Assistant to the Prime Minister / Chairman, Board of Investment, Dr. Miftah ISMAIL.

They will participate at the presentation on a plenary format that will take place on Thursday June 3rd at the MEDEF. On the occasion of his visit to France the Pakistani minister for water and power will have a meeting with the French Minister for external trade.

The objective of the trade delegation is to provide opportunities to Pakistani entrepreneurs in search of equipment, technologies and expertise and explore possibilities of setting up joint ventures with French companies in the backdrop of the GSP Plus status recently granted to Pakistan by EU.

The number of participants stands at about 30 companies among them prominent industrial groups acting in various sectors of activity: energy – inclusive of oil and gas exploration and production, power generation and distribution, infrastructure development and logistics – including ground transportation, highways and water, agri business / food processing (dairy products, fruit and vegetable), pharmaceutical products.

With these objectives in view, B2B meetings have been organized at the MEDEF head office, at the Embassy of Pakistan in France, at UBIFRANCE head office in Paris and at the offices of various French companies.

The Pakistani Embassy in Paris will give access to its premises on June 3rd in the afternoon and June 4th to all the Pakistani delegates willing to arrange business meetings on their own but also to the French companies willing to meet with the Pakistani delegates.

This initiative led by the private sector will trigger new dynamics in Pakistan/France business relationship and will be conducive to more investment and partnerships between companies of our two countries. As a reciprocal gesture, a visit of a French business delegation to Pakistan is planned for the second half of this year.

The post Visit to France of a high-level Pakistani trade delegation appeared first on Business News Pakistan.

March 7, 2014

French Embassy organises reception to celebrate International Women’s Day

Islamabad, March 07, 2014 (PPI-OT): The French Embassy to Pakistan organized a reception on the 7th of March to celebrate the International Women’s Day with prominent Pakistani women, including human rights activists, artists, scholars and independent workers. The event also gathered media representatives and foreign diplomats.

The Ambassador of France, HE Philippe Thiébaud, praised the courage and the continuous efforts of the women and men working in Pakistan to protect women’s rights, campaign for new laws and raise awareness about violence against women.

He also insisted on the importance of education and skill development of women, and reiterated the French Embassy’s commitment in the Northern region of Pakistan where vocational training centres are being developed in partnership with the Aga Khan Foundation. He also emphasized the priority of the French cooperation given to women’s education through the need-based scholarships programme that enables 200 students per year to pursue their higher education studies in Pakistan.

These activities are in line with the policies conducted by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the French Ministry for Women Rights to enshrine the principle of gender equality at all policy level. A short presentation was made to illustrate the achievements of the programmes initiated by this newly established Ministry to promote women’s rights and combat violence against women in France.

Ambassador Philippe Thiébaud concluded his address by reiterating the importance of gender equality and women empowerment as one of the major Millennium Development Goals established following the Millennium Summit of the United Nations in 2000.

All the participants to the event acknowledged by their presence the importance of promoting gender mainstreaming across all areas of work. In their remarks, Ms. Khawar Mumtaz, the Chairperson of the National Commission on the Status of Women, Ms. Tahira Abdullah, Human rights activist, Mrs. Valérie Khan, Director of the Acid Survivor Foundation and Dr. Attiya Inayattullah former MNA, highlighted the difficulties, the challenges but also the immediate benefits resulting from women’s rights projects in Pakistan.

February 27, 2014

Award of the National Order of Merit to Major General (retd) Rahmat Khan

Islamabad, February 27, 2014 (PPI-OT): On Thursday 27th February, his Excellency Philippe Thiébaud, the Ambassador of France in Pakistan hosted a reception at his residence on the occasion of the award of the National Order of Merit to Major General (retd) Rahmat Khan, who has been the Managing Director of Lafarge Pakistan since January 2008 and non executive Chairman of Board of Directors of Lafarge Pakistan since January 2013.

The National Order of Merit is an order of the State awarded by the President of the French Republic, which was founded in 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle to reward French and foreign nationals for distinguished achievements.

Major General Rahmat Khan has had a first career in the Pakistan Army until he retired in 2002. He then took the reins of the Fauji Cement Company Limited from 2002 to 2005 before becoming the Deputy Managing Director of the Pakistan Cement Company (ORASCOM) which was acquired by the Lafarge group in 2008.

The Lafarge group specializes in innovative and world class construction solutions and contributes to building better cities in 62 countries, with the help of 64000 employees. It develops value added products and construction systems to meet some of the greatest challenges of urbanization.

The company has also initiated research and development activities and collaborations with engineering departments of universities to develop solutions likely to address Pakistan market needs such as low cost, low-income housing and concrete roads.

Lafarge Pakistan, a subsidiary of the Lafarge Group, is the first and only multinational cement manufacturer in Pakistan. Lafarge Pakistan owns and manages a state-of-the-art plant located at Kallar Kahar, District Chakwal, in the province of Punjab.

Non Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors of Lafarge Pakistan since January 2013, Major General Rahmat Khan has rendered significant services to the cement industry in Pakistan as well as to the Lafarge Group. Today, Lafarge is a leader in Health and Safety amongst the companies operating in the cement sector of Pakistan.

Deeply committed to developing and strengthening trade and business ties between Pakistan and France, Major General Rahmat Khan has been for many years the promoter of a positive image for French companies in Pakistan, notably through the Pakistan-France business alliance (PFBA).

Because of his efforts and his dynamism to promote French business interests in Pakistan, he has been awarded the National Order of Merit, with the rank of Officer on Thursday 27th February 2014.

February 11, 2014

French Embassy Fiction Prize 2014

Islamabad, February 11, 2014 (PPI-OT): The French Embassy Fiction Prize was received by Uzma Aslam Khan on Friday 7th February 2014 for her book « Thinner than skin ». The Ambassador of France Philippe Thiébaud has awarded the prize to the Pakistani writer during the fifth edition of the Karachi Literature Festival that took place from the 7th until the 9th February.

The jury was composed of three members, professors, writers and literary journalists from Pakistan. In a joint statement, they have explained their choice for Uzma Aslam Khan’s book “Thinner than Skin”, selected “because of the eloquent and elegant way in which she reveals a myriad of different worlds with masterly restraint. The novel animates mountains, lakes, wind and fire and other elements of nature that echo the complex emotions of her characters. Through the carefully structured plot and the well wrought patterns of recurring images and incidents, emerge insights about homeland, belonging and dislocation, central to contemporary Pakistani life”.

Uzma Aslam Khan is from Pakistan; she was born in Lahore and grew up between Karachi, Manila, Tokyo and New York. Thinner than skin is her fourth novel, it deals with the author’s favourite themes: nostalgia of the homeland for young overseas Pakistanis, war against terror, social values of the homeland and women’s condition.

This is the first edition of the French Embassy Fiction Prize. Its objective is to promote Pakistani literature and particularly fiction writers. The books competing for this first edition of the prize were English language fiction novels written by Pakistani authors.

January 28, 2014

French Embassy, Quaid-i-Azam University, Alliance Française organising seminar on French contribution to Pakistan studies

Islamabad, January 28, 2014 (PPI-OT): The French Embassy in Pakistan, in partnership with the Quaid-i-Azam University and the Alliance Française of Karachi, is organizing an International Seminar on “French Contribution to Pakistan Studies”.

The French scientific community has been implementing research programs in Pakistan since the 1950s. These programs were initially focused on archaeology and rapidly expanded to other fields like palaeontology and social sciences. This led to the creation of the Centre for Social Sciences in Karachi (CSSK) in 2011, the body responsible for coordinating French scientific research projects in Pakistan.

This upcoming series of conferences in Islamabad and Karachi aims at presenting the main results achieved by French scholars in collaboration with their European and Pakistani colleagues. Research fields include palaeontology, archaeology (Indus civilisation, Islamic period), society and culture in the colonial and post-colonial era, and contemporary studies.

Over 15 French scholars are attending the seminar which is set to begin by a first session, held at the Quaid-i-Azam University in Islamabad on February 3. It will be followed by a two-day round of conferences and roundtables at the Alliance Française in Karachi on February 5 and 6. More than 25 Pakistani researchers from Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi are also participating to the seminar.

The aim of the seminar is to enhance scientific cooperation between the two countries and to encourage future joint research projects that will contribute to promote the rich and diverse heritage of Pakistan.

December 20, 2013

France announces grant of Rs40 million to support 200 scholarships programme for needy university students

Islamabad, December 20, 2013 (PPI-OT): Government of France through its Embassy in Pakistan has announced the grant of Rs40 million to support a 200 scholarships programme for needy university students at undergraduate and graduate level.

This is the second phase of the programme that has already been financed in 2012 by the French government. In close collaboration with the Higher Education Commission and 10 Pakistani universities, these scholarships will be granted to the meritorious but unprivileged students. A particular attention will be given to gender balance, in order to facilitate women’s access to high education.

His Excellency Mr. Philippe Thiébaud, Ambassador of France to Pakistan, organized the launching of the 2013 Needs based Scholarship programme on Friday 20th Dec 2013 at 12 noon at the French Embassy in Islamabad in presence of the HEC Chairperson, the Vice Chancellors of the participating universities, selected students of previous program funded by the French Government.

These scholarships will be offered in the fields of Social and Basic Sciences, Architecture, Information Technology, Telecom and Business administration. The participating universities are: Quaid-E-Azam University-Islamabad, COMSATS Institute of Technology-Islamabad, Lahore College for Women University-Lahore, Forman Christian College-Lahore,Institute of Business Administration, IBA-Karachi, University of Peshawar-Peshawar, Institute of Business and Management-Karachi, University of Haripur-Haripur Hazara, Frontier Women University-Peshawar and Qaraquram International University-Gilgat Baltistan. This grant will definitely work a long way to strengthen the close bilateral ties between the people of Pakistan and France.