“Germany on the Road”: Showcase on Pak-Germany links in education, trade

Exhibition sheds light on cooperation and work between the two countries.

ISLAMABAD:

Local investors and Islamabadis got a comprehensive view of Germany’s trade and education links with Pakistan here on Wednesday.

The German embassy, in cooperation with the Pakistan German Business Forum, held an exhibition titled “Germany on the Road” at the Serena Hotel. The exhibition displayed the activities of German companies and institutions working in Pakistan.

German Ambassador Cyril Nunn told The Express Tribune that the event provides insight into strengthening Pak-Germany ties.

“Not only does this event tells us about where we stand on Pakistan-Germany relations, but it also highlights cooperation in fields such as business and education. It’s important to look towards these fields, because these will be the strength of our mutual relationship,” Nunn said.

The exhibition was accompanied by a performance by students from Roots College International DHA Campus and from Roots School System Islamabad. Students sang German songs and performed Pakistani folk dances while dressed in regional costumes.

Both schools offer German language courses to students from seventh grade to A levels, under the PASCH framework, which is a “partner school” programme to teach German as a foreign language in high schools around the world. PASCH is supported by the German federal foreign office and the Goethe-Institut.

Thomas Ditt, the head of press and cultural section at the German embassy in Islamabad, said around 2,000 Pakistani students are learning German under the PASCH programme. He said Roots schools are the programme’s key partners in Pakistan, with around 1,200 students learning German at branches of the school.

Ditt said Germany is becoming a destination for Pakistani students and the number of Pakistanis studying in Germany has grown steadily over the years.

GIZ, the German Society for International Cooperation, is also currently working on different projects related to education, health, energy and governance in Pakistan, Ditt said. He added German investors face some challenges in Pakistan, but they are happy to be in the country.

The exhibition was sponsored by several German and Germany-linked companies working in Pakistan, such as Alno AG, Allianz EFU Health Insurances Limited, BASF Pakistan, Dewan Motors (Pvt) Limited, German Water and Energy, Kupperbusch Teka Pakistan, Nordex SE Germany and others.

The sponsors set up booths to exhibit their products and provide informational material to interested businessmen and investors. At the booth of German Water and Energy (GWE) Pakistan, Sagheer Abbas said the company is providing filtration plants, water pumps and reverse osmosis solutions to the industrial and agriculture sector in Pakistan.

He added the industry customers tend to prefer German products over cheaper Chinese alternatives because of longer warranties and better after-sales services.

Dewan Motors displayed the latest three series BMW car at the exhibition.

German political institutions in Pakistan, such as Friedrich-Ebert-Sti also set up stalls.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 8^th, 2012.