DNA

ISLAMABAD: Under 21 Soccer Team Visit. South African youth Soccer Club Umdumezulu United from South Africa arrived Pakistan on 19th January 2024.

The visitors are an amateur under 21 soccer team and landed in Karachi. The second leg of the visit will be friendly matches in Islamabad from 22 January 2024.

This is yet another initiative of the South African High Commission, Islamabad to promote people to people contact between Pakistan and South Africa.

This follows on the heels of a visit to South Africa by a Pakistani under 19 amateur cricket which took place in September 2023. The key character of this initiative is that it is the team comprises of underprivileged young people who may not have been able to dream of visiting their capital cities let alone abroad.

The cricket initiative referred to above bore the same character. Thanks to Mr Majid Ahmed (Honorary Consul: South Africa in Karachi) for making the cricket team visit a success. This event has been in the making for almost 2 years. We are happy to see it happening, finally. I thank Mr.Mubasher Sanjrani for working so hard to organize this event. My gratitude goes to Ms. Farah of Globe Travel, who added the much-needed impetus this initiative.

Again, Mr.Majid Ahmed extended a helping hand. I thank all the Pakistani diaspora in South Africa for lending a hand equally so, to the South African businesses people. Last but not the least, I thank the Pakistani High Commissioner to South Africa for his support.