The PM Shehbaz receives an Honorific Diploma Iium, meeting Malaysian investors

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has been conferred an honorary doctorate in leadership and governance by Malaysia of the International Islamic University (IIUM) in recognition of its leaders, its public service and its contributions to national construction and Islamic governance.

According to the Malaysian state news agency BernamaThe honorary diploma was presented during a special convocation ceremony on the ISTAC – IIIUM campus in Kuala Lumpur, officiated by the constitutional chief Iium Tengku Ampuan Pahang Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah. The event coincided with the official three -day visit of Shehbaz in Malaysia.

In his speech, Tunku Azizah praised the four decades of public service from Shehbaz marked by vision, compassion and dedication. She underlined her initiatives in education and social protection, in particular the Punjab Education Endowment Fund, which enabled the thousands of students to continue higher education.

“At a time when the world often protects the image on integrity, His Excellency reminds us that good governance concerns sincerity, service and consistency,” she said, congratulating Shehbaz leadership and Pakistan’s lasting friendship with Malaysia.

In his speech of acceptance, Prime Minister Shehbaz expressed his deep gratitude for honor, describing him as a privilege of being recognized by one of the main university institutions in the Muslim world. He said leadership for him is a sacred confidence rooted in honesty, justice and responsibility, and reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to strengthen academic and institutional cooperation with Malaysia.

He also urged the Muslim world to maintain unity, compassion and moral integrity in the use of contemporary challenges and underlined the empowerment of young people from the two countries to serve humanity by education and innovation.

Among the present dignitaries were the Minister of Communications in Malaysia, Datuk Fahmi Fadzil, the Minister of Higher Education Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir, the president of the Iium Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Hussain, Professor Rector Datuk Dr Osman Bakar and the High Commissioner of Pakistan in Malaysia, Syed Ahsan Raza Shah.

The Prime Minister’s visit was made at the invitation of his Malaysian counterpart, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, as a reciprocal gesture of the official visit of Anwar to Pakistan in October 2024, stressing the growing force of bilateral relations.

During his visit, Shehbaz also reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to deepen economic, commercial and technological cooperation with Malaysia during a meeting with a high-level delegation of the Malaysian venture capital company Gobi Partners, led by its co-founder and president, Thomas G. Tsao.

The Prime Minister said that the two countries have a huge potential for business, investment and technology, and work to carry out this potential through improved business connections. Referring to the Pakistan-Malaysia Business and Investment conference, he described it as an encouraging initiative to expand economic cooperation.

Prime Minister Shehbaz has reiterated the determination of his government to create a friendly environment and improve the ease of business in Pakistan. He noted that the Special Facilitation Investment Council (SIFC) continues to play an essential role in the support and facilitation of foreign investors.

Adutting the confidence of Gobi’s partners in the Pakistan startup ecosystem, the Prime Minister said that targeted reforms were underway to help startups and investors at a rapid stage thanks to an improvement in investments and infrastructure. The mobilization of national and international capital to build a sustainable start-up ecosystem, he said, remains a national priority.

Stressing the growing digital economy of Pakistan, Shehbaz said that sectors such as Fintech, electronic commerce and information technology form the backbone of the country’s development strategy. He invited Malaysian investors to explore opportunities in the IT and expanding artificial intelligence sectors of Pakistan.

The Gobi Partners delegation expressed interest in exploring collaboration in electronic and financial commerce technologies, congratulating government efforts to promote innovation and entrepreneurship.

Vice-Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ishaq Dar, Federal Ministers Jam Kamal Khan, Rana Tanveer Hussain and Attaullah Tarar, special assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi, and senior officials also attended the meeting.