May 2024: Princess Zahra Aga Khan Visits Chitral
Princess Zahra was recieved at Booni Helipad by leaders of the Ismaili Jamat and DC Upper Chitral
Text Courtesy: Dawn
In the second leg of her trip to Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral, Princess Zahra Aga Khan and her son Ilyan reached here on Saturday from Gilgit and was received by Mehtar of Chitral and member of provincial assembly Prince Fatehul Mulk Ali Nasir, acting DC Lower Chitral Noor Akbar and DPO Iftikhar Shah at the airport.
On the occasion, Prince Fatehul Mulk appreciated the huge contribution of Aga Khan Development Network in the development of Chitral specially in the sectors of health, education and rural development and asked for more interventions in the area to reduce poverty.
In the city, Princess Zahra’s engagements include the visit to Aga Khan diagnostic centre, regional offices of Aga Khan Agency for Habitat and Aga Khan Higher Secondary School for Boys, shortly after which she will leave for Islamabad.
Special arrangement for security have been made while the roads leading to the venues of her visit have been washed and cleaned meticulously giving them a fresh look.
Earlier, she visited the Booni Medical Centre of Aga Khan Health Service Pakistan at the headquarters town of Upper Chitral, where she was received at the helipad by Upper Chitral DC Mohammad Irfanuddin and large number of members from the Ismaili community.
Published in Dawn, May 26th, 2024
Princess Zahra’s visit was immediately followed by Prince Rahim Aga Khan’s five-days visit to Pakistan the next month. On June 7, Pakistan’s President, Asif Ali Zardari, conferred the Nishan-i-Pakistan on Prince Rahim for his “untiring efforts to improving the quality of life of peoples in resource-constrained regions of Asia and Africa”.
During the visit, Prince Rahim met with various government officials, including the President of Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shahbaz Sharif, the Governor of Gilgit-Baltistan, Syed Mehdi Shah, the Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Faisal Karim Kundi, and the Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan, Gulbar Khan, to discuss matters of mutual interest and the work of AKDN in the country.
On 8 June, Prince Rahim travelled to Hunza, where he officially opened a Software Technology Park in Nasirabad and visited the Duiker Solar Power Plant. The Software Technology Park will provide an uninterrupted power supply, high-speed internet, and a co-working space for small and growing start-ups, freelancers, and chambers of commerce. And the solar power plant, which is commencing work on a second phase of the project, will provide increased electricity supply to approximately 20,000 people in Hunza. Both of these projects are significant contributions to enhancing the overall quality of life in the region.
Yesterday, in Gilgit, Prince Rahim inaugurated a new regional headquarters for HBL Microfinance Bank (HBL MfB) in Gilgit-Baltistan. A blend of modern architecture and local cultural elements, the new building meets some of the highest international standards of green construction, and underlines the Bank’s commitment to sustainability, innovation, and local community development.
Uploaded on 18 July 2024
