France to offer 200 need based scholarships for deserving Pakistani students

Islamabad: France and Pakistan have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU), providing 200 needs-based scholarships for the poor Pakistani students in different subjects for further promoting mutual educational cooperation among the two nations.

These scholarships will be available from next year.

This agreement was signed by French Ambassador to Pakistan Martine Dorance and by the chairperson of Higher Education Commission (HEC) Dr Mukhtar Ahmed in a ceremony organized at the residence of the French envoy on Sunday.

The French ambassador, in her remarks on the ceremony, said that this MoU will further make bridges between the people of two countries.

HEC was one of the pillars of Pak-French cooperation and according to this signed agreement scholarships will be given to those students who did not have enough resources to continue their further education.

Afterwards, the envoy hosted the annual dinner in honour of Pakistan-France Alumni Network (PFAN).

In her remarks on the ceremony, she further said that 500 aspirants from Pakistan were already in France to get higher education in different fields of study in French educational institutes.

France was the third destination of the world for international students and it will like to have more students from Pakistan.

A delegation of Pakistani educationists led by the chairperson of Higher Education commission visited France in the beginning of this year, which was quite fruitful and after the exchange of views it was then decided to further increase partnership among the two countries, she added.

The French Envoy also said that the Pakistani Universities had also agreed to introduce new programmes in that regard and will open up information centres in Karachi, Lahore, Faisalabad as well as Peshawar to let students know of available opportunities in French institutes.

The French envoy said that members of the PFAN were ambassadors of Pakistan in France whenever they were visiting there.

Likewise, they were French ambassadors while working in Pakistan.

“You are the bridge between the two states,” she added.

“We need to build up long lasting relations between France and Pakistan. We wish you will return to France as businessmen or as investors,” she said while conversing with the PFAN members.

She acknowledged the head of HEC for his efforts in promoting Pak-French cooperation in education field.

The envoy further added that after a very successful ceremony on the Pakistan Day in France this year, it was decided to organize a French Day in Pakistan next year.

While addressing at the ceremony, the chairperson of Higher Education commission appreciated the efforts being made by the French envoy, claiming that she had infused a new motivation to the Pak-French relations, therefore, the ties between the two countries were growing.

He furthermore said that the conference on archaeology will be arranged in Lahore next year and another moot on Gandhara Art was being planned in France in 2018, which will assist in improving the cultural cooperation between the two countries.

He said Pakistani universities will set up Knowledge Parks in various campuses to promote cooperation between the two nations.

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