Pakistan and Egypt today agreed to establish a new Business Council and revive key institutional mechanisms, including the Joint Ministerial Commission, as part of a renewed commitment to significantly enhance economic and diplomatic cooperation.

The pledge was made during in-depth, delegation-level discussions in Islamabad between Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and the visiting Egyptian Foreign Minister, Dr. Badr Abdelatty.

To foster direct commercial engagement, the two nations will identify key Pakistani enterprises for business-to-business (B2B) interaction with their Egyptian counterparts. A major Ministerial Business Forum is also scheduled to be convened in Cairo this year, with senior officials slated to hold preparatory meetings in the Pakistani capital.

In addition to the new business initiatives, both sides consented to reactivate the Annual Bilateral Consultations to further institutionalize and fortify cooperation across diverse sectors.

On the educational front, the Egyptian Foreign Minister announced a doubling of scholarships for Pakistani students at the prestigious Al-Azhar University.

Mr. Dar expressed gratitude for the educational support and acknowledged Egypt’s assistance in Pakistan”s Hepatitis-C elimination efforts, highlighting the broad scope of the partnership that also includes health, culture, and people-to-people ties.