ISLAMABAD: The top goal of the government is to promote harmony and national integration, said Federal Minister for Education and Vocational Training and National Heritage Division Shafqat Mahmood.

"We have to establish unity to make Pakistan prosperous," said the minister, while addressing at the "We are Pakistanis, National and Scientific Seminar", organised by the National Book Foundation through video link.

The minister further said that by formulating a narrative in Pakistan we can promote social harmony and national unity. This message needs to be spread across the country. This is an intellectual and written jihad, he said.

The services of writers, intellectuals and writers in this jihad are especially commendable, he added. The federal minister said that the National Book Foundation was playing an important role in the field of education and training.

Wajiha Ikram, federal parliamentary secretary, Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, said that the Education Department had a vital role to play in educating the people of the society and making them good citizens. She said that we cannot progress unless we have the spirit of sacrifice for our country, and the spirit should be till the last drop of our blood.

We have to strengthen our bond with our soil and we all have to come out of Sindhi, Balochi, Punjabi, Pakhtunkhwa, and fulfill our duties as a Pakistani. Qaiser Alam, managing director, National Book Foundation, while inaugurating the event said that in order to maintain the national integrity of Pakistan, we have to think beyond all prejudices.

We need to present a practical example through written speech and through our character that can promote harmony and national unity in the society. He said that the National Book Foundation had been playing an important role in the education and training of the society for the last 48 years by publishing textbooks, literature and other useful and informative books.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020