Islamabad, May 10, 2024. President-designate of COP29, Azerbaijan’s Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, Mr. Mukhtar Babayev, visited COMSATS along with Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Climate Change & Environmental Protection, Ms. Romina Khurshid Alam.

The Executive Director COMSATS, Amb. Dr. Nafees Zakaria, warmly welcomed the delegation from Azerbaijan. Ms. Amna Batool, Member of the National Assembly was among the distinguished visitors to COMSATS.

Ambassador Zakaria briefed the delegation on COMSATS and its origin. He paid tribute to Pakistan’s distinguished Physicist and Nobel Laureate Prof. Abdus Salam, who founded it in 1994. He highlighted the over-arching objective of the 27 member intergovernmental organization, that is bridging knowledge and technology gap between global south and global north. He emphasized the pivotal role of COMSATS’ Network of 24 Centres of Excellence in fostering science and technology collaboration among member countries.

In the context of cooperation between COMSATS and Azerbaijan Ambassador Zakaria mentioned about earlier visit of Azerbaijan delegation and subsequent training in AI and Software Quality Assurance.

The Executive Director introduced COMSATS Centre for Climate & Sustainability and offered to provide collaborative support to the COP-29 President-designate in the organizing of the upcoming event hosted by Azerbaijan.

Minister Mukhtar Babayev expressed a strong desire for collaborative efforts within the framework of COP29. He envisaged Azerbaijan serving as a pivotal link in the continuum of decision-making and implementation, linking the outcome of COP28 at the UAE and COP30 to be held in Brazil next year. Mr. Babayev further stressed the imperative for developing countries to harness their collective strength to effectively address global challenges like climate change.

The Coordinator to the Prime Minister, Ms. Romina, appreciated the role being played by COMSATS in the efforts towards Climate Change challenge and effectiveness of the 27 member platform on the whole in the fields Science and technology.

The visit of the Azerbaijani delegation offered a good opportunity for discussions on enhancing cooperation between COMSATS and Azerbaijan in various areas of mutual interest, with a focus on leveraging science, technology, and innovation for sustainable development, in general, and Climate Change, in particular.