ISLAMABAD, Dec 6: President Gen Pervez Musharraf on Thursday reassured the European Union that the roadmap to democracy would strictly be followed to put a truly democratic government in place by the end of next year.

Talking to the visiting European Union Commissioner for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs, Paul Nielson, who called on him, the President also appreciated the Bonn accord on Afghanistan and assured full support to it.

He termed the agreement a welcome step towards prosperity of the people of Afghanistan.

Mr Nielson assured Gen Musharraf of the European Community’s continued cooperation to Pakistan in its developmental sector. The EU Commissioner told the President that under the humanitarian assistance programme, attention would be paid to access to education by all sections of the society, particularly providing equal opportunity to all genders in having access to education.

The EU official also mentioned the European Union’s close relationship with Pakistan for many decades. He said the organization was mindful of the resource constraints that the government of Pakistan was facing in meeting its development commitments and assured that the EU would go ahead on enhancement of market access to Pakistan by assuring increase in her quotas for the EU.

The President on this occasion expressed his appreciation for the support that the European Union was extending to Pakistan in this hour of need.

He emphasized the European Union to be liberal and forthcoming in assisting Pakistan in implementation of education sector reforms package and also asked for concrete measures to reduce poverty under the poverty alleviation strategy formulated by his government.

The president stressed the need to develop the agricultural sector and to provide assistance to infrastructure and institution building because these were the engines of progress and prosperity for the country.