Maldives President Muizzu to embark on three-day state visit to Pakistan

Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu, accompanied by First Lady Sajidha Mohamed and a high-level delegation of ministers and senior officials, is set to spend Oct 20-22 in Pakistan after an invitation from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. The visit, the first by a Maldivian president in over a decade, aligns with the 60th anniversary of the two countries’ diplomatic relations established in 1966. During the stay, Muizzu will be received by President Asif Ali Zardari, who will host a state banquet in his honor.

He will also engage in restricted, delegation-level talks with Sharif to review the full range of bilateral relations and explore deeper cooperation across multiple sectors, including trade, investment, health, education, tourism, agriculture, defence, maritime security, climate change and cultural exchanges. A Pakistan-Maldives Business Forum will be convened to foster commercial links, and several agreements or MoUs are anticipated to be signed. The trip follows a brief 2015 state visit by former Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom.