Netherlands' Queen Maxima meets FM Qureshi

ISLAMABAD: Netherlands's Queen Maxima, who arrived earlier today for a three-day visit as a representative of the United Nations Secretary General (UNSG) Antonio Guterres, held talks with Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.

The purpose of Queen Maxima's visit was to advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development. She was received at the Nur Khan Air Base in Rawalpindi by senior foreign ministry officials and representatives of the Embassy of Netherlands. 

During the three-day visit, the queen will meet President Dr Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Imran Khan, besides holding talks with a range of stakeholders from public and private sectors. 

It is pertinent to mention here that inclusive finance for development is one of the key priorities of the government. 

Queen Maxima will also attend the launch of the Micro Payment Gateway, an initiative of the State Bank of Pakistan. 

The gateway reduces the cost of small payments and boosts digital transactions to benefit people and promote financial inclusion. The queen has been the UN Secretary General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development since 2009.

She is engaged worldwide in promoting access of individuals and enterprises to financial services at a reasonable cost with the aim of improving economic and social development opportunities. 

Queen Maxima had also visited Pakistan in February 2016.