Pakistan to host 3rd D-8 Ministerial Meeting

Islamabad: The third D-8 Ministerial Meeting on Tourism Cooperation as well as the fourth D-8 Senior Officials Meeting will take place in Bhurbhan, Murree, Pakistan on August 4-5, 2023.

The technical visit to Islamabad will take place on August 6 after the meeting, which is being organized by the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC).

Pakistan will host the third D-8 Ministerial Meeting, which will be followed by the fourth D-8 Senior Officials meeting, it was decided at the second D-8 Ministerial Meeting, which took place in Malaysia in 2019. The Covid-19 epidemic, however, caused the summit to be postponed in 2021.

In a meeting with the D-8 Secretariat secretary general in March 2023, PTDC chairman and adviser to the prime minister on tourism and sports Awn Chaudhry made the decision to hold the meeting later that year.

The adviser stated that holding the third D-8 Ministerial Meeting at Bhurbhan was intended to promote Pakistan's tourism potential and explore tourism trade opportunities of the member states while presiding over an inter-ministerial meeting on the planning and organization of the D-8 Ministerial Meeting on Monday.

He claimed that the summit might open up new opportunities for socioeconomic development.

The purpose of this gathering is to identify potential avenues (incentives and initiatives) for enhancing intra-D-8 tourism in accordance with the objectives and goals of D-8; to bring together tourism experts of member states to strengthen their capacities and develop effective strategies for the post-COVID-19 tourism era; to provide a forum for member states to exchange knowledge and best practices to facilitate cooperation opportunities; and to investigate potential ways to promote intra-D-8 tourism.

An intergovernmental organization called the D-8 (Developing Eight) organization for economic cooperation was founded in 1997. Eight developing nations are included in it: Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Turkey.