(COLOMBO, LANKAPUVATH) –With the vision of “Re-Connecting the Alumni for Greater Collective Good”, the “Pakistan Alumni Society of Sri Lanka (PASS)” was launched yesterday at an impressive ceremony at a local hotel in Colombo.
Foreign Secretary of Pakistan, Ms. Tehmina Janjua was the chief guest on the occasion and launched the alumni society in the presence of a large gathering including Sri Lankan ministers, dignitaries, representatives of armed forces, educational institutions, academia and people from different walks of life.
The Society aims to connect the universities of both countries under various scholarship programmes. Through this Alumni Society, the public and private sectors as well as civil society will be able to build networks and create professional opportunities that will contribute to the advanced knowledge development of two countries.
Addressing the gathering, the Foreign Secretary underscored that Pakistan has excelled in many fields of higher education, particularly medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and engineering, management & social sciences and provides a wonderful and cost effective option for talented Sri Lankan students. Over the last many decades, thousands of Sri Lankan students and professionals have benefitted from education and training in Pakistan, she added.
Ms. Tehmina Janjua referred the visit of Prime Minister of Pakistan to Sri Lanka in 2016, during which Pakistan offered to develop a “Knowledge Corridor” for Sri Lankan students and civil and military personnel, through scholarships and trainings in our universities and training institutions. This initiative, termed as Prime Minister’s Pak-Lanka Knowledge Corridor, will open up immense opportunities for Sri Lankan nationals to study at higher education institutions of Pakistan on scholarships and highly concessional terms, she emphasized.
Pakistan’s High Commissioner-designate to Sri Lanka, Dr. Shahid Ahmad Hashmat said that the Alumni Society will engage the members and provide them means to learn, integrate, and share their experience and memories during their education and training for the benefits of a larger community. He applauded the office bearers of the newly formed society and wished them all success in their endeavors to make it a great success and future oriented body.
Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan, Dr. Sarfraz Sipra briefed the audience about the prospects, vision and mission statement of the alumni society. He also announced the interim board which will work until the holding of first general meeting of the society in six months’ time.
All Sri Lankan citizens those who received any professional qualification or attended short or long term training programmes in Pakistan are eligible to join the Society.
