Islamabad (TDI): Pakistan and Bulgaria have decided to enhance cooperation in the academic and research sectors as the two countries are set to celebrate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations.
The commitment was made in a meeting between Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed, Chairman of Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission (HEC), and Bulgarian Ambassador Irena Gancheva.
Both sides, during the meeting, talked about enhancing cooperation in higher education by exchanging students, joint research, and collaboration of faculty.
They also discussed the possibilities of establishing institutional linkages between universities and research institutes of the two countries for promoting long-term academic and scientific collaboration.
Ambassador of Bulgaria Irena Gancheva recently met with HEC Chairman Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed to discuss 🇧🇬🇵🇰cooperation in higher education & science. The meeting coincides with 60 years of 🇧🇬🤝🇵🇰 diplomatic ties -celebrating a shared vision for academic exchange & growing partnership. pic.twitter.com/7RqCpyAkGa
— Bulgarian Embassy Islamabad (@BGPakistan) July 22, 2025
The program is an attempt to strengthen people-to-people connections and support Pakistan’s ambition to expand its global academic footprint. HEC greeted the proposals, seeing them as a chance to expand academic interaction beyond conventional partners and develop links in Central and Eastern Europe.
The academic collaboration is viewed as a new promising chapter in Pakistan–Bulgaria relations that were formally initiated in 1965.
Political relations between the two countries have been friendly and constructive, though high-level interactions have been few. Both countries have, over time, shown interest in broadening bilateral relations in the form of cultural exchange, trade, and education.
The two sides inked an agreement on economic, industrial, scientific, and technical cooperation in 2004. Pakistan and Bulgaria have also ventured into collaborations in the fields of energy, IT, pharmaceuticals, and agriculture in recent years.
Pakistan’s efforts to internationalize its higher education sector align with Bulgaria’s South Asian academic diplomacy, which unlocked new opportunities for Pakistani students in Bulgarian universities and joint research in the fields of environmental sciences, information technology, and engineering.
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