AsiaNet-Pakistan Premier Editorial Content and Press Release Distribution Service
Islamabad: Dr. Rajiv Shah, Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development or (USAID) and Pakistan’s Finance Minister Hafeez Shaikh inaugurated today a photo exhibition celebrating more than five decades of cooperation between the United States and Pakistan in supporting a more prosperous future for the people of Pakistan. The exhibition will be open at the Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA) through April 17.
“The United States has been working with Pakistan to further its development priorities since 1950s,” said Dr. Shah during the opening of the exhibition. “Ultimately, our work is about helping the people of Pakistan chart their own future.
The United States supports Pakistan’s efforts to ensure that the fruits of development benefit the most vulnerable, that economic growth is as meaningful to a family farmer as it is to a women entrepreneur, and that individuals once tempted by extremism see the value of peace.”
For more than six decades, the U.S. Government has helped Pakistan develop its economy by supporting the development of its water, power, transportation, and communications infrastructure and by facilitating the establishment of Pakistan’s university system. U.S.-supported universities include IBA, LUMS, Jinnah Post-Graduate Medical Center, and many others. In the 1960s and 1970s, the United States facilitated the Green Revolution in Pakistan, enabling the country to meet its people’s food needs.
The United States also funded construction of several major power plants and dams, such as Tarbela and Mangla. Unites States-sponsored health programs also helped eradicate malaria in the country. To this day, the United States continues to support Pakistan with extensive programs in the education, health care, economic growth, stabilization, and energy sectors.
Guests of the inauguration ceremony included representatives of the Government of Pakistan, the Parliament, civil society, implementing partners, and the media.
For more information, contact:
Public Affairs Section
Embassy of the United States of America
Diplomatic Enclave, Ramna 5
Islamabad, Pakistan
Tel: +9251-208 0000
Fax: +9251-227 8607
E-mail: webmasterisb@state.gov