Ambassador of Republic of Korea to Pakistan Dr Song Jong-hwan has called for further cementing agricultural, trade and academia ties between both countries in order to create new business and investment environment and to get benefit from each other experiences

Ambassador of Republic of Korea to Pakistan Dr Song Jong-hwan has called for further cementing agricultural, trade and academia ties between both countries in order to create new business and investment environment and to get benefit from each other experiences. He was talking to University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF) Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan during his visit to the varsity at the VC's chamber. The Korean Ambassador said they also were planning to provide Pakistan with a 500 million dollar 'Economic Development Cooperation Fund' from 2015 to 2017. He said Korea is major economic power. Korean per capita income in 1960 was less than $80. Now, Korean per capita income is more than 28,000 dollars. Talking about the Korea Pak relations, he said that that there are many similarities between our countries. We both give importance to hospitality and respect for elders. Both our countries got independence at around the same time; Pakistan was born on 14th August 1947 while the Korean government was established on 15th August 1948. He said that during the Korean War from 1950 to 1953, Pakistan provided humanitarian assistance to Korea. He said Korea built the iconic M2 Motorway between Islamabad and Lahore in the 1990s. Today, Korea is increasingly investing in Pakistan's infrastructure and development projects. These include hydro-power projects which will provide much needed electricity to Pakistan, tunnels and roads which will help link Pakistan to Central Asia. He said that God has given Pakistan the second highest mountain the world as well as a deep sea. Pakistan has a strategic location, abundant natural resources, population and land. Pakistan also has talented and skilled labor. Talking about education, he said the cooperation among educational institutes of both countries should be further enhanced, UAF Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Iqrar Ahmad said that the Korean model of development was the best example. In the 1960, the rural people of Korea were underdeveloped. The model focused on education, rural development, self reliance, and the change in the mindset of the people to achieve the progress goal. He said that the food security is the one of the areas of the concerns. Most of the population of our country was living in the rural areas and associated with the agriculture sector. He stressed upon the need to set up small demonstration farms of 100 animals at different villages where pasteurized milk technology needs to be installed to promote it and provide the healthy milk free from germs to the people at affordable prices. If we adopt the latest methods of agriculture, it will not only boost up the agriculture production but also help in poverty alleviation. The Ambassador was flanked by five members Korean delegations. The areas of mutual concerns came under discussion.