LAHORE: US Consul General in Lahore Elizabeth Kennedy Trudeau called on Punjab Labour and Human Resource Minister Raja Ashfaq Sarwar at his office on Thursday and discussed different matters of mutual interest, including the promotion of Pak-US relationship, controlling the issue of human trafficking and the welfare of the labour community.
South and Central Asian Affairs Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary David Ranz was also present on the occasion.
Talking on the occasion, Raja Ashfaq Sarwar said that Punjab government had taken effective steps to control human trafficking, adding that the provincial government was in continuous contact with the federal government so that the menace could be eradicated with effective utilisation of relevant laws.
He apprised the US consul general about the steps taken for the promotion of education in the province and added that the Punjab government had opened the doors of education to children belonging to the low-income families while the private sector has also been involved in the process of providing free education to the economically disadvantaged strata. He said that more than 2.5 million most deserving male and female students were getting school education through the Punjab Education Foundation, adding that the Punjab government had started an educational endowment fund to enable the talented but less privileged students to continue their education in the institutions of higher education. He further mentioned the Daanish school system and the provision of education facilities to children of brick-kiln workers.
The US delegation appreciated Punjab governments’ endeavours towards public education and assured them of their cooperation in this regard.