Jul202017

Our Valleys, Our Future

Welsh Government

These are the three priorities for Our Valleys, Our Future – the high-level action plan by the Ministerial Taskforce for the South Wales Valleys, which will be launched today by Lifelong Learning and Welsh Language Minister Alun Davies.

The Minister will join Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Infrastructure Ken Skates and other taskforce members to launch the plan at the opening of another exciting Valleys scheme, a newly refurbished play centre with the Fern Partnership, called FuZe.

Our Valleys, Our Future has been developed following feedback from people living and working in the Valleys.

It sets out a range of aims and actions in each of the three priority areas, including:

  • closing the employment gap between the South Wales Valleys and the rest of Wales by getting an additional 7,000 people into work by 2021 and creating thousands of new, fair, secure and sustainable jobs
  • launching three pathfinder projects to look at how services and local delivery can be better joined-up in Llanhilleth, Ferndale and in Glynneath and Banwen
  • exploring the development of a Valleys Landscape Park, which has the potential to help local communities use their natural and environmental resources for tourism, energy generation and health and wellbeing purposes.

The Minister will say, 

“Our Valleys, Our Future is not simply a plan for the Valleys. It is a plan from the Valleys.

“From the start, I have been clear this taskforce will not be another case of the government deciding what is right for the Valleys. If we are to succeed, local communities and local people must be at the heart of our work.

“FuZe is a fantastic example of this; a community-led project that has changed the community it serves. One of the main aims of the taskforce is to empower communities and we must continue to listen and learn.”

The taskforce was set up a year ago to work with communities and local businesses across the South Wales Valleys to deliver lasting economic change in the region; to create good-quality jobs closer to people’s homes, improve skill levels and bring prosperity to all. 

The taskforce will work to maximize job opportunities in the local economy – businesses such as retail, care and the food industry. It will also encourage and provide support for existing and potential entrepreneurs. 

It will also explore the concept of a Valleys Landscape Park to help local communities build on their many natural assets, including the potential for community energy generation and tourism.

Jul202017

Press release: British High Commissioner launches photography exhibition in Quetta

HM Government

The British High Commissioner, Thomas Drew CMG, visited Quetta to launch a photography exhibition and IELTS in Balochistan. The exhibition, entitled ‘Shared History. Shared Future.’, showcases 70 years of UK-Pakistan relations and will be open to the general public from 19 to 21 July at the Shahi Qila Hall in the Serena Hotel in Quetta.

The Governor of Balochistan, Muhammad Khan Achakzai, and the British Council’s Country Director for Pakistan, Ms Rosemary Hilhorst OBE, also joined the British High Commissioner at the event along with guests from Quetta and wider Balochistan, including some of the British Council’s local school partners.

During his two-day visit to Quetta the British High Commissioner, Mr Thomas Drew, met a range of political, security and trade leaders in the province. He met the Governor of Balochistan, Muhammad Khan Achakzai, the Speaker of the Provincial Assembly, Ms Raheela Hameed Khan Durrani, the Minister for Home and Tribal Affairs, Mir Sarfraz Bugti, Leader of the Opposition in the Balochistan Provincial Assembly, Maulana Abdul Wasay and President of the Quetta Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Abdul Wadood Achakzai.

Mr Thomas Drew also earlier met with Commander Southern Command, Lt Gen Aamer Riaz, Inspector General Frontier Corps, Maj Gen Nadeem Anjum and visited Quetta Staff and Command College and met with the Commandant Maj Gen Aamir Abbasi and the British student.

The British High Commissioner, Mr Thomas Drew CMG, said:

This is my first visit to Quetta as High Commissioner and I am delighted to be here in the provincial capital of Balochistan, a region that has such great potential for a brighter future for Pakistan.

The photographs that are displayed today in this exhibition showcase the strong links that have existed over the last 70 years between the UK and Pakistan. Whether it is cooperation in sports, politics, development, defence, trade, education, infrastructure or culture, the UK remains committed to our goal of a secure, stable and prosperous Pakistan.

The re-launch of the international English language testing system in Quetta today further emphasises the strength of our relationship, and the UK’s investment in Balochistan.

The Country Director of British Council Pakistan, Ms Rosemary Hilhorst OBE said:

British Council has been working in Pakistan for the last 70 years in the fields of arts, education, English and society. We are committed to helping people here realise their potential and building friendly relations between the people of Pakistan and the UK.

IELTS is the world’s most popular English Language Test; nearly 3 million IELTS tests were taken around the world last year. The test opens doors to educational and professional opportunities and I am delighted that people of Quetta will now be able to take the IELTS test in their own city.

Over the coming months, the British High Commission’s ‘Shared History. Shared Future.’ photography exhibition will tour the UK and other cities in Pakistan. Throughout the year, the British High Commission, in collaboration with the Pakistan High Commission in London, is organising several events and activities to mark 70 years of UK and Pakistan’s relations. Details of these events are regularly featured on the British High Commission’s social media pages.

Contact

Press Attaché
British High Commission
Islamabad
Tel. 051 201 2000

More Information:

About the British Council

The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We create international opportunities for the people of the UK and other countries and build trust between them worldwide. We value diversity and difference. We work in over 100 countries in the areas of arts, education and English. In Pakistan, we have been working since 1947. For more information, please visit the website

For updates on the British High Commission’s 70th Anniversary of UK – Pakistan relations and for more information on British Council in Pakistan:

• Twitter: @pkBritish, @UKinPakistan, @ChevPakistan, @tomdrewUK

• Facebook: facebook.com/bhcpakistan facebook.com/BritishCouncilPakistan

• Instagram: @UKinPakistan; @BritishCouncilPakistan

• #UKPAK70#IELT