ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday hailed Pakistan’s participation in the recent Gaza Peace Summit as a step forward in enhancing the country’s international standing, asserting that Islamabad is playing an “increasingly credible” role in regional peace efforts.
Sharif, who returned from Sharm el-Sheikh after attending the emergency summit convened to address the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, said Pakistan’s voice had been “heard and appreciated” by global leaders.
The summit, held against the backdrop of a mounting death toll and mass displacement in Gaza, drew a number of world leaders, including United States President Donald Trump, although concrete outcomes remained limited. Nonetheless, the optics of Sharif’s presence on the international stage were quickly leveraged for political gain at home.
Within hours of returning to Islamabad, the prime minister chaired a meeting to review progress on the long-delayed Jinnah Medical Complex and Research Centre, a flagship health infrastructure project that has come to symbolise the government’s broader agenda of reform and transparency, despite repeated bureaucratic delays.
A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office said the meeting was attended by senior ministers and officials, including Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar and Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, who praised Sharif’s international engagement.
It was noted during the briefing that the federal cabinet had recently approved the appointment of the medical complex’s chief executive officer. Third-party validation experts, regarded as essential to the government’s transparency drive, are expected to be appointed soon, although no specific timeline was provided.
The meeting was further informed that geotechnical assessments for the project have been completed, while hydrological and seismic studies are scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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