ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Turkey Wednesday agreed to establish a Centre of Excellence in Tourism and Hospitality Management in Islamabad.
The project was given final shape during a meeting between Shafqat Mahmood, Federal Minister for Education, Professional Training and National Heritage and Dr Serdar Çam, Deputy Minister for Culture and Tourism of Turkey in Ankara, a message reaching here said.
Both sides also explored further opportunities for collaboration in education, technical training, culture and tourism sector.
Briefing the Turkish dignitary about the potential of the tourism sector of Pakistan, Shafqat Mahmood said domestic tourism in Pakistan reached its peak during the current year but stressed the need for more efforts to attract more foreign tourists.
He also conveyed his gratitude to the people and leadership of Turkey for standing by Pakistan on issues of its core national interest, particularly the Kashmir issue.
He also assured Pakistan’s support on issues that concerns Turkey.
Both sides expressed the hope that the upcoming Pakistan visit of Turkish President Erdogan will provide further momentum to bilateral ties.
Earlier, the Pakistan delegation led by Shafqat Mehmood visited the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) headquarters and were briefed by its Vice President Prof Dr Birol Çetin about the organization’s global as well as Pakistan operations.
He informed that since 2010 when the TIKA office was established in Pakistan, TIKA has undertaken about 148 projects in Pakistan in various sectors focusing on education, health, skills development, employment generation, and women empowerment.
Turkish side showed a keen desire to do more projects in the area of technical education and vocational training.
