Federal Minister for Planning, Development, Reform and Special Initiatives holds Virtual meeting with the U.S. Coordinator for Global COVID Response and Health Security

Federal Minister for Planning, Development, Reform and Special Initiatives, Mr. Asad Umar held a virtual meeting with the U.S. Department of State’s Coordinator for Global COVID Response and Health Security, Ms. Gayle E. Smith at the Embassy of Pakistan, Washington D.C. today.

The Minister briefed Ms. Smith on Pakistan’s efforts against COVID-19 pandemic including the vaccination campaign. He thanked the U.S. Government for providing valuable support for Pakistan’s COVID-19 response, noting in particular the provision of COVID vaccines. Ms. Smith appreciated Pakistan’s efforts against COVID-19 and said that Pakistan was an important partner in combating the pandemic. She said that the US Government had so far provided around 16 million vaccination doses to Pakistan and was trying to increase that figure. The Minister and Ms. Smith agreed to enhance cooperation in fighting the pandemic.

The Minister stressed the need to learn from collective experiences and lessons of the global COVID 19 response. The Minister and Ms. Smith agreed that the global community needed to share best practices and work together to prepare for future pandemics.

They agreed to remain engaged for further bilateral collaboration in the health sector.

Washington DC, October 22, 2021