The Embassy of Pakistan in Washington D.C. hosted the first ever virtual Pakistani American Youth Convention 2021 on March 12. The theme of the Convention was “Investing in Gen2PK”.

The panellists included Dr. Asad Majeed Khan, Ambassador of Pakistan; Dr. Rizwan Khalid, President APPNA; Mr. Moazam Chaudry, President OPEN Global; Dr Nasar Qureshi, Chairman APF; Ms. Sabina Zafar, Council Member City of San Ramon and Prof. Adil Najam from Boston University. The guest speakers shared their views on different thematic areas focusing on harnessing the potential of the Pakistani American Youth and enabling them to play an effective role in building a stronger Pakistan-US relationship. The event was attended by young members of the Pakistani American diaspora from all across the US.

In his opening remarks, Ambassador Dr. Asad M. Khan explained the objectives of the Convention and highlighted the importance of engaging with the second generation Pakistani American Youth (Gen2PK), as they held the key to success of Pakistan-US partnership. He said that the convention would provide a platform to connect the Pakistani-American youth to the high achieving members of the community across various fields. Ambassador Khan further said that the Youth Convention would also foster linkages with their heritage. 

Dr. Rizwan Khalid, President APPNA speaking on the theme of “Mentoring Medical Professionals from Pakistan” shared his ideas on harnessing the potential of the Pakistani Americans from the perspective of APPNA, an organization that has made important contributions in promoting educational and professional exchanges in Pakistan. He highlighted the efforts being undertaken by different sub-committees of APPNA, especially the committee for young physicians. Mr. Moazam Chaudhry, President of OPEN GLOBAL spoke about the promotion of entrepreneurship, professional development and advancement of leadership skills. He urged Pakistani American youth to identify their passion and work hard in achieving their aims.

Dr. Nasar Qureshi, Chair of American Pakistan Foundation (APF) in his remarks shared ideas on leveraging Pakistani American community in building stronger Pak-US ties, while highlighting the efforts of American Pakistan Foundation. Dr Nasar also emphasized the importance of taking measures to strengthen the trust of second-generation American-Pakistanis in our institutions. Ms. Sabina Zafar’s remarks focused on “Public Service and Civic Engagement”. She narrated her success story in becoming the only Pakistani American woman Council Member from California and highlighted the importance of young Pakistani-Americans getting involved in the US domestic politics.

Prof. Adil Najam in his remarks mapped out the presence of Pakistani Americans in the US in a historical perspective. Dr. Adil, who developed the concept of “Investing in Gen2PK”, emphasized that the potential of our youth needs to be unleased and the levers of change were 3Es i.e education, employment and engagement. He also briefed on his work as the lead author of the UN’s recent Pakistan Human Development Report on Youth in Pakistan.

The event concluded with an interactive session with comments from other participants and a Q&A session. Ambassador Khan in his closing remarks thanked all the participants and informed that the Embassy will organize a sector specific youth convention regularly and would also hold an in-person youth convention in near future. The convention was live streamed on the Embassy’s Facebook Page and received high appreciation from the viewers.