Monday, October 11, 2004

Pakistan, US launch 18 projects in science & technology

ISLAMABAD : Pakistan and the US have agreed to undertake 18 projects at a cost of $ 3 million in various fields of science and technology.

The projects would be launched in the fields of education, human resource development, environment, medicine, advanced computing, metrology, standards, quality control and water resources with the aim to establish linkages between centres of scientific excellence in the two countries.


The agreement to launch these projects jointly was reached following the first meeting of Pak-US joint committee on science and technology cooperation. The meeting jointly chaired by Dr Lee Morin, deputy assistant secretary for health, space and science US State Department, and Engr Shehryar Khan, joint technological advisor, ministry of science and technology, also discussed ways to further progress on the Pak-US agreement on science and technology signed on June 25, 2003.

The two countries agreed to enhance cooperation following the February 2002 Camp David meeting between President Pervez Musharraf and President George W Bush and subsequently through the June 2003 agreement the two countries established a legal framework to expand US-Pakistan cooperation for peaceful purposes between public and private entities from the US and Pakistani scientific communities.

Early efforts by Higher Education Commission chairman Dr Attaur Rahman and Dr Normen Neureiter, the then science advisor to US Secretary of State Colin Powell, laid the foundation for the programme of cooperation.


Meanwhile, the US delegation heading the two-day talks between the two countries also met early Wednesday Minister for Science & Technology Chaudhry Nouraiz Shakoor Khan to discuss mutual cooperation in science and technology. The two sides emphasized the important of S&T cooperation between the two countries in the backdrop of commitment to work together for peaceful use of science and technology that was reiterated at the highest level during the recent meeting between President Bush and President Pervez Musharraf in USA.

Ch Nouraiz said he was confident this programme of cooperation would grow from strength to strength and assist in furthering the friendly relations between the two countries.

Deputy Assistant Secretary Dr Lee Morin stressed that "the joint effort supports the key US policy objectives of broadening and strengthening the US-Pakistan relationship, as well as fostering economic growth and prosperity in both countries".


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