Pakistani federal minister meets Iranian VP

TEHRAN, April 23 (MNA) – Pakistani Federal Minister Farzana Raja, who is in charge of implementing a relief program, met with Iranian Vice President Ali Saeedlou in Tehran on Saturday. Raja, the chairperson of Benazir Income Support Program (BISP), is on a three-day visit with her delegation to Iran, which was made at the invitation of Imam Khomeini’s Relief Committee (IKRC). Saeedlou appreciated the good relationships between Iran and Pakistan and said that both nations have skills and capabilities to develop it further. He added that the two countries are abound with natural and human resources and should join hands to build a long-term friendship that would lead them to the path of progress, peace, and prosperity. The Iranian vice president thanked Raja for her untiring efforts to empower women of Pakistan and expressed hope that Iranian organizations, in cooperation with the BISP, would do a lot more to improve the welfare of the people. On Sunday, Raja visited the headquarters of the IKRC and held talks with its head Hossein Anvari. IKRC and BISP signed a memorandum of understanding on the exchange of knowledge on vocational training programs. The Pakistani official also visited a hospital run by the IKRC for needy people in Tehran and appreciated the latest technology being used in the hospital to treat poor patients. She also visited a number of other institutions governed by the IKRC in the city. In addition, Raja met with Iranian presidential advisor on women and family affairs and the head of the Center for Women and Family Affairs, Maryam Mojtahedzadeh, on Saturday. She appreciated good work done by the BISP to improve the fate of underprivileged and marginalized segments of the Pakistani society. Mojtahedzadeh appreciated the BISP’s idea to make family the centerpiece of its policy and also to empower poor families with the help of women and give self-respect and dignity to the whole family.