Regional Transport Ministerial Conference to be held in Oct: minister

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has decided to host a two-day Regional Transport Ministerial Conference in October 2025 which will bring together key regional stakeholders. China, Russia, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Central Asian States will be invited to attend this summit.

This was disclosed by Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan while chairing a high-level consultative meeting in Islamabad, here on Thursday.

The federal minister stated that countries such as Nepal, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Iran will also be invited to attend this conference.

The aim is to strengthen both business-to-business and government-to-government connectivity across South Asian and Central Asian countries, he added.

Highlighting the strategic importance of access to warm waters for Central Asian countries, Aleem Khan emphasised that the expansion of rail, road and air linkages will be a key theme of the conference. He directed that the objectives of the regional gathering should be clearly defined, with safety and security treated as top priorities.

Furthermore, Aleem Khan instructed that international development partners such as the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and other relevant institutions be invited to participate, as well.

Domestic stakeholders including Pakistan Railways, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and other concerned departments will also be on boarded for this initiative.

The federal minister directed the formation of an Administrative Committee to ensure seamless organisation of the summit.

He confirmed that the deputy prime minister of Pakistan will lead the conference, underlining the importance of maximising its outcomes.

He stated that a core objective of the event is to offer countries such as Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and other Central Asian Republics access to Pakistan’s ports in Gwadar and Karachi.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025