The Georgetown Pakistan Forum will take place on 13 and 14 November 2026 at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, bringing together policymakers, private-sector leaders, technologists, academics, students, and diaspora leaders to discuss Pakistan’s future, according to the forum’s website. The organisers say the event aims to advance public-private diplomacy, evidence-based systems, and practical ideas that affect Pakistan and the 1.2 million-strong Pakistani-American diaspora. Friday’s programme consists of closed-door working groups open by invitation only, while Saturday is a full day of public plenaries that are open to all and end with the Forum Debate and a closing keynote and fireside chat. The forum is led by Georgetown students, and tickets are on sale with limited space.
The programme is organised around six tracks: Defense and Strategic Stability, Tech for Finance and Education, Health Financing and Infrastructure, Maternal and Community Health, Governance and Democracy, and Critical Minerals and Energy. The working groups are practitioner-led and are expected to produce policy papers and other outputs. Technology features in several Saturday sessions, including At the Frontier: Pakistani Americans Shaping the Future of Technology at 11:30 am, Pakistani Entrepreneurs Building Global Businesses at 2 pm, and Reimagining Education in Pakistan: Innovation, Equity and Opportunity at 3 pm. Other sessions cover the future of US-Pakistan relations, rethinking Pakistan’s healthcare model, and climate, health, water, and energy security. The closing Forum Debate at 4:25 pm will look at diaspora, identity, and the politics of belonging.
Featured speakers include former Supreme Court of Pakistan judge Justice (retired) Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, content creator and entrepreneur Junaid Akram, JK Group chief executive Ali Tareen, and Dr Hamid Jafari, the former polio eradication director for the World Health Organization’s Eastern Mediterranean office. The conference sponsors listed on the website include The Bank of Punjab, TRG, Rupani Development Initiatives, The Citizens Foundation USA, the Economic Pakistan American Council, the American Pakistan Foundation, the American Bangladesh Foundation, the Georgetown South Asian Society, and the Georgetown University Student Association, with the Pakistan Global Alumni Network as knowledge partner. The leadership team is made up of students, including Rai Hasen Masoud, president of the Georgetown South Asian Society.
The forum follows last year’s Georgetown Pakistan Public Policy Conclave, which was held on 15 November 2025. The organisers report that it drew 450 participants, more than 40 panellists and experts, and 10 sessions, and a write-up by the Pak Futures Foundation said it was conceived and run by Georgetown students with the foundation. The 2026 event has a new name and a more structured programme, with working groups added on the Friday. The forum’s website does not say whether sessions will be streamed for audiences in Pakistan, how ticket prices are set, or how the working groups’ recommendations will be shared with policymakers, so those details would need to come from the organisers.
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