Karachi 4th May 2026: The 12-member delegation of senior civil servants from Bangladesh was received by DG NIPA Dr. Syed Saif ur Rehman and Rector National School of Public Policy – Mr. Farhan Aziz Khawaja at the National Institute of Public Administration (NIPA), Karachi today. The two- day visit was a part of an Executive Development Program organized by the Civil Services Academy (CSA), Lahore under the theme of Strategic Leadership, Governance Systems, and Policy Innovation. Led by Joint Secretary Ministry of Public Administration Mr. Md Raihan Akhtar, the Bangladesh delegation included senior officers from key ministries namely Ms. Salma Siddiqua Mahtab, Mr. Mohammed Mostofa Jamal Haider, Mr. Md Abu Rayhan Miah, and others.
The visit commenced with a formal welcome ceremony followed by the hoisting of the national flags of Pakistan and Bangladesh and the playing of the national anthems of both countries followed by a tree plantation ceremony at the NIPA premises. The delegation was subsequently taken on a tour of the institution’s facilities, including the NIPA Library, Miyawaki Forest, sports complex, and other institutional amenities. During the visit, the delegation also viewed a commemorative plaque bearing the guiding principles of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah regarding the conduct of civil servants. A documentary presentation on NIPA Karachi was also screened, highlighting the institution’s role in the professional development of civil servants.
Addressing the gathering, DG NIPA Dr. Syed Saif ur Rehman termed the visit a historic milestone, noting that it marked the first-ever visit of a Bangladesh Civil Service delegation to NIPA Karachi. He stated that the occasion represented not merely an institutional engagement, but the beginning of a meaningful and enduring partnership between the civil service institutions of the two countries. He acknowledged Bangladesh’s notable progress in areas such as community-led development, women’s empowerment, microfinance, disaster preparedness, and climate resilience. He further noted that Pakistan stood to learn significantly from Bangladesh’s experiences in these domains, just as Bangladesh could benefit from Pakistan’s public sector training frameworks and institutional capacity-building models. He further proposed enhanced bilateral cooperation in climate and environmental governance, public sector training, social enterprise development, cultural diplomacy, and people-to-people connectivity, stressing that the true success of such engagements would lie in sustained collaboration beyond ceremonial exchanges.
Speaking on behalf of the visiting delegation, Mr. Md Raihan Akhtar thanked the Government and people of Pakistan for their warm hospitality and described the visit as a significant opportunity to strengthen understanding between the civil service institutions of the two countries. He remarked that the delegation comprised policymakers rather than politicians or diplomats, underscoring the practical and professional nature of the exchange. He expressed appreciation for NIPA Karachi’s facilities and institutional environment, and noted that the visit represented an important step in building enduring professional linkages between Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Rector National School of Public Policy – Mr. Farhan Aziz Khawaja highlighted the growing importance of knowledge-based governance in an evolving global environment and elaborated on Pakistan’s civil service training architecture, including mid-career and senior management training programs designed to equip officers with contemporary governance and leadership skills. He emphasized the role of immersive learning pedagogies in modern public administration training and expressed confidence that such exchanges would strengthen institutional partnerships across the region.
The formal proceedings concluded with the presentation of souvenirs to the visiting delegates, followed by an address by Senator Javed Jabbar, and a special session featuring a talk on the book of Dr. Ishrat Husain, former Governor State Bank of Pakistan, providing the delegation further insights into Pakistan’s governance and economic thought leadership.
