Queen Maxima in Pakistan: November 25-27

As special advocate of the Secretary-General of the United Nations for Inclusive Finance for Development and at the invitation of the Government, Her Majesty Queen Máxima paid a three-day visit to Pakistan from Monday November 25 to Wednesday November 27.
Queen Maxima started the first day of the visit, on Monday November 25, with a meeting in Islamabad at the local UN office organized by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) at the presence of international development partners, representatives from the fintech sector, representatives of the UN Agencies, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.
Then the Queen had a meeting with by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi to discuss the progress of financial inclusion in the country followed by anothe meeting with a group of civil society representatives working on financial inclusion and development of women in Pakistan.
Afterwards the Queen went on field visit.
The first one was at the Pakistani distributor of beverage manufacturer PepsiCo. Queen Maxima was informed about the partnership between Pepsi and the telecomunicatios company Telenor that allow to customers to make their payments and orders on a mobile basis. Later the Queen visited a snack bar where she met with the owner, the entrepreneur Ishtiaq Khan, who informed the Queen about his use of EasyPaisa, a mobile banking platform that helps him to save money and keep a close eye on his sales and payments.
The second day of the visit, Tuesday November 26, Queen Maxima was present at the launch of two initiatives for better access to financial services and more development opportunities for Pakistanis.
The Queen attended the Pakistan Innovative Finance Forum organized by the Asian Development Bank and the no-profit company Karandaaz. During the forum was signed an agreement between the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and Karandaaz for the implementation of a micropayment gateway.
Then Queen Maxima attended the launch of the Ehsas Financial Inclusion Strategy initiative, a program of various welfare initiatives promoted by the Pakistani Government.
Afterwards the Queen was received by Prime Minister Imran Khan and then at the presidential palace Aiwan-e-Sadr she met with Arif Alvi, President of Pakistan and the Queen also had a meeting with Reza Baqir, the governor of the State Bank of Pakistan.
On the third and final day, Wednesday November 27, Queen Maxima moved to Lahore, the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab, to visits some projects.
The Queen paid a visit to Bykea, a Pakistani company that provides mobile application based on services for transportation, logistics and cash on delivery payments. Queen Maxima met with Bykea CEO, the employees and a group of users.
Then she paid a visit to the headquarter of Teez Financial Services, a fintech company that provides instant access to financial services through a mobile application.
Afterwards the Queen visited a merchant shop powered by Finja, a financial technology startup, and she was informed about the usage of digital technology for financing small businesses.
Later Queen Maxima visited the start-up beauty service GharPar that provides solution for women with high quality, hygienic, and timely at-home beauty services.

Koningin Máxima @UNSGSA bezoekt in #Lahore drie projecten die laten zien dat digitale financiële diensten levens van mensen kunnen verbeteren @FinjaPvt @gharparco @TezFS #Bykea #inclusievefinanciering https://t.co/g5GJg8HXYO pic.twitter.com/xpWrNdbbCz

— Koninklijk Huis (@koninklijkhuis) November 27, 2019

Filed under The Netherlands
Tagged Pakistan, Queen Máxima of the Netherlands.

One Response to Queen Maxima in Pakistan: November 25-27