ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s religious affairs minister and Egyptian Ambassador Dr. Ihab Mohamed Abdelhamid Hassan on Tuesday agreed to enhance cooperation between the two countries in religious education and other areas of mutual interest, the religion ministry said.
Pakistan and Egypt, both Muslim-majority nations, enjoy cordial ties with one another. The two have resolved to enhance bilateral trade in recent years by facilitating businessmen from their countries through visas, exchanging trade-related information and promoting private sector contacts.
Friendly ties between the two countries can be traced back to 1947 when Pakistan gained independence and its founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, visited Egypt at the special invitation of King Fuad II.
Pakistan’s Religious Affairs Minister Chaudhry Salik Hussain met Hassan at his office in Islamabad to discuss bilateral ties and various areas of cooperation between the two countries.
“Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, Chaudhry Salik Hussain here on Tuesday said that Pakistan wants to strengthen its relationship with Egypt in various areas of mutual interest, including religious education,” the ministry said.
The ministry said both discussed exchanging mutual studies in enhancing the role of mosques as centers of religious, spiritual and social guidance. Hassan informed the Pakistani minister about his plans to establish an institution in Punjab which would be affiliated with the iconic Al-Azhar University to impart religious education to Pakistani students.
Al-Azhar University is a public university in Cairo. Associated with Al-Azhar Al-Sharif body in Cairo, it is Egypt’s oldest degree-granting university and is regarded as arguably the most prestigious university for Islamic learning.
“The ambassador said 11 professors of Egypt are already teaching in different faculties in International Islamic University Islamabad,” Pakistan’s religion ministry said.