Terms of Use

1Introduction

Welcome to the official website of the Pakistan Africa Economic Council (“PAEC”, “we”, “us”, or “our”), available at www.pakistanafrica.com.

PAEC is a pioneering organization established to promote and facilitate comprehensive cooperation between Pakistan and the African continent. PAEC is licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) under Section 42 of the Companies Act, 2017 as a not-for-profit public limited company.

These Terms of Use (“Terms”) govern your access to and use of the PAEC website, its content, online forms, publications, resources, event information, business networking facilities, directories, programs, and other digital services made available through the website.

By accessing, browsing, or using this website, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to these Terms.

If you do not agree with these Terms, please discontinue use of the website.

2Purpose of the Website

The PAEC website is intended to provide information and facilitate engagement relating to Pakistan–Africa cooperation, including areas such as:

• Trade and commerce;
• Investment and business development;
• Industry and manufacturing;
• Tourism;
• Agriculture;
• Technology and innovation;
• Education and skills development;
• Healthcare;
• Energy and infrastructure;
• Cultural and institutional cooperation;
• Entrepreneurship;
• Business networking;
• Conferences and exhibitions;
• Trade missions and delegations;
• Research and publications;
• Economic development initiatives; and
• Other activities aligned with PAEC's objectives.

The website may also provide opportunities for businesses, professionals, investors, institutions, government bodies, chambers, associations, development organizations, and other stakeholders to connect with PAEC or participate in its initiatives.

3Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using www.pakistanafrica.com, you agree to:

• Use the website only for lawful purposes;
• Provide accurate information when submitting forms or applications;
• Respect PAEC's intellectual property and the rights of third parties;
• Refrain from activities that could harm, disrupt, misuse, or compromise the website; and
• Comply with applicable laws and regulations.

PAEC may update these Terms from time to time. Continued use of the website after changes are published constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

4Eligibility

The website is primarily intended for businesses, professionals, investors, entrepreneurs, policymakers, institutions, researchers, organizations, and other stakeholders interested in Pakistan–Africa relations and economic cooperation.

If you use the website on behalf of a company, institution, government body, association, or other organization, you represent that you are authorized to act on its behalf in relation to your use of the website.

Where a particular PAEC program, membership category, event, delegation, or service has additional eligibility criteria, those requirements may be communicated separately.

5Information Provided on the Website

PAEC makes reasonable efforts to provide useful and accurate information.

However, information published on the website may include:

• Economic and market information;
• Industry information;
• Business opportunities;
• News and announcements;
• Event information;
• Country and sector profiles;
• Trade and investment information;
• Research material;
• Statistical information;
• Third-party information;
• Business listings;
• Government or institutional information; and
• Links to external resources.

Such information is provided primarily for general informational, educational, networking, and facilitation purposes.

PAEC does not guarantee that all information will always be complete, accurate, current, or suitable for a particular purpose.

Users should independently verify important information before making business, financial, legal, investment, travel, operational, or other decisions.

6No Investment, Financial, Legal, or Professional Advice

Nothing published on the PAEC website should be interpreted as personalized:

• Investment advice;
• Financial advice;
• Legal advice;
• Tax advice;
• Accounting advice;
• Immigration advice;
• Business valuation advice; or
• Any other regulated or professional advice.

PAEC may facilitate introductions, provide market information, highlight opportunities, organize investment-related events, or connect stakeholders. Such activities do not constitute a recommendation or guarantee regarding any investment, business, company, project, transaction, partner, or commercial opportunity.

Users are encouraged to obtain appropriate independent professional advice before entering into any transaction or commitment.

7Business Opportunities and Introductions

PAEC may facilitate connections between:

• Pakistani businesses and African businesses;
• Investors and project owners;
• Exporters and importers;
• Government and private-sector stakeholders;
• Chambers and trade organizations;
• Professionals and institutions;
• Development organizations;
• Service providers; and
• Other relevant stakeholders.

PAEC's role in facilitating an introduction does not constitute:

• An endorsement of either party;
• A guarantee of the party's credibility;
• A guarantee of commercial performance;
• A guarantee of financial capacity;
• A guarantee of regulatory compliance;
• A partnership or agency relationship; or
• A guarantee that any transaction will be successfully completed.

Users are responsible for conducting their own appropriate due diligence before entering into business relationships, agreements, investments, or transactions.

8Membership, Registration, Applications, and Participation

Certain areas of the website may allow users to submit:

• Membership applications;
• Partnership requests;
• Sponsorship requests;
• Event registrations;
• Delegation applications;
• Business profiles;
• Investment opportunities;
• Trade inquiries;
• Contact forms;
• Research submissions; or
• Other applications.

Submission of an application does not automatically guarantee approval, membership, participation, selection, partnership, sponsorship, endorsement, or acceptance by PAEC.

PAEC reserves the right, subject to applicable requirements, to review applications and determine participation in accordance with its organizational policies and relevant program criteria.

9Events, Conferences, and Delegations

PAEC may organize, support, promote, or facilitate:

• Conferences;
• Exhibitions;
• Seminars;
• Business forums;
• Networking sessions;
• Trade missions;
• Delegations;
• B2B meetings;
• Institutional visits;
• Training programs; and
• Other activities.

Event dates, venues, speakers, programs, participating organizations, schedules, and other arrangements may change due to operational requirements or circumstances beyond PAEC's reasonable control.

Where a specific event or activity has separate registration conditions, participation rules, cancellation terms, payment terms, or other conditions, those specific terms will apply in addition to these Terms of Use.

10User Responsibilities

When using the PAEC website, you agree not to:

• Provide deliberately false, misleading, or fraudulent information;
• Impersonate another person or organization;
• Misrepresent your professional or organizational affiliation;
• Upload malicious software, viruses, or harmful code;
• Attempt unauthorized access to the website, database, server, or accounts;
• Interfere with the operation or security of the website;
• Collect or harvest personal information from the website without authorization;
• Use automated tools to extract substantial amounts of website content without permission;
• Copy or commercially exploit PAEC content without authorization;
• Use PAEC's name, logo, trademarks, or identity in a misleading manner;
• Publish defamatory, unlawful, abusive, discriminatory, threatening, or fraudulent content;
• Use the website to conduct illegal activities;
• Infringe the intellectual property or privacy rights of another person or organization; or
• Misrepresent yourself as officially associated with, approved by, or authorized by PAEC.

PAEC reserves the right to restrict access or take appropriate action where it reasonably believes the website is being misused.

11Intellectual Property Rights

Unless otherwise stated, the content and materials available through the PAEC website are owned by, licensed to, or lawfully used by PAEC.

Such materials may include:

• PAEC's name and logo;
• Website design;
• Text;
• Reports;
• Publications;
• Research;
• Graphics;
• Infographics;
• Photographs;
• Videos;
• Presentations;
• Country profiles;
• Sector profiles;
• Data compilations;
• Event materials;
• Documents;
• Brand elements; and
• Other original content.

These materials may be protected by applicable intellectual property laws.

Users may access and use website content for legitimate personal, informational, educational, or internal business-reference purposes.

Unless expressly authorized by PAEC or otherwise permitted by law, you may not reproduce, republish, modify, distribute, sell, license, commercially exploit, or present PAEC-owned content as your own.

12PAEC Name, Logo, and Branding

The PAEC name, logo, visual identity, trademarks, project names, and other branding elements may not be used in a manner that suggests sponsorship, endorsement, partnership, membership, approval, or affiliation without appropriate authorization.

Organizations collaborating with PAEC should follow any branding or logo-use guidelines provided for the relevant activity.

13User-Submitted Content

Where the website allows you to submit business profiles, photographs, documents, event materials, project information, articles, comments, proposals, or other content, you remain responsible for the material you submit.

By submitting content to PAEC for publication, promotion, participation, evaluation, or another stated purpose, you confirm that:

• You have the authority to submit it;
• It does not knowingly infringe third-party rights;
• Information provided is accurate to the best of your knowledge; and
• PAEC may use the material for the purpose for which it was submitted.

Where appropriate, PAEC may edit, format, summarize, publish, decline, or remove submitted material according to its editorial and organizational requirements.

Submission of material does not guarantee publication.

14Third-Party Content

The website may contain information provided by:

• Businesses;
• Government authorities;
• Chambers of commerce;
• Investment agencies;
• Development organizations;
• Media organizations;
• Research institutions;
• Partners;
• Members;
• Event participants; or
• Other third parties.

PAEC may not independently verify every statement, statistic, commercial offer, business claim, product description, or other piece of third-party information.

Users should independently verify third-party information before relying upon it.

15Third-Party Websites and External Links

The PAEC website may contain links to third-party websites for informational or convenience purposes.

External websites operate independently from PAEC and may have their own:

• Terms and conditions;
• Privacy policies;
• Cookie policies;
• Security practices; and
• Content standards.

PAEC does not control and is not responsible for the availability, accuracy, security, content, products, services, or privacy practices of external websites.

A link from PAEC's website to a third-party website does not automatically constitute endorsement of that organization, product, service, or website.

16Business Directories and Listings

PAEC may provide directories, profiles, databases, or listings of businesses, institutions, professionals, service providers, investment opportunities, projects, or other organizations.

Such listings are generally intended to facilitate visibility and networking.

Unless explicitly stated otherwise, inclusion in a PAEC directory does not constitute certification, guarantee, accreditation, recommendation, or endorsement by PAEC.

Users should perform appropriate independent due diligence before engaging with a listed party.

17Accuracy of User Information

If you submit information to PAEC, you are responsible for ensuring that it is reasonably accurate, complete, and current.

PAEC may rely upon information provided by applicants, members, partners, participants, or third parties and is not responsible for inaccuracies resulting from information supplied by those parties.

18Privacy and Personal Information

PAEC's collection and handling of personal information are addressed in our Privacy Policy.

Our use of cookies and similar website technologies is addressed in our Cookie Policy.

Users are encouraged to review both policies together with these Terms.

19Website Availability

PAEC aims to maintain reasonable website availability but does not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free access.

Website access may occasionally be interrupted because of:

• Maintenance;
• Technical failures;
• Hosting problems;
• Cybersecurity incidents;
• Network failures;
• Updates;
• Government or regulatory requirements; or
• Events beyond PAEC's reasonable control.

PAEC may modify, suspend, restrict, or discontinue any part of the website where reasonably necessary.

20Cybersecurity

Users must not attempt to compromise PAEC's digital systems or website security.

Unauthorized attempts to access accounts, servers, databases, restricted areas, administrative systems, or confidential data may result in access restrictions and, where appropriate, referral to relevant authorities.

Users are responsible for maintaining the security of their own devices, internet connections, passwords, and account credentials.

21Disclaimer of Warranties

To the extent permitted by applicable law, the website and its content are provided on an “as available” and “as is” basis.

PAEC does not make an absolute warranty that:

• The website will always be available;
• Every piece of information will be error-free;
• Every external link will remain active;
• Every business opportunity will remain available;
• Third-party information will always be accurate; or
• Use of the website will achieve a particular business, financial, investment, or commercial result.

Nothing in these Terms excludes warranties or rights that cannot lawfully be excluded.

22Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, PAEC and its authorized representatives will not be liable for indirect, incidental, consequential, or special loss arising solely from reliance upon general website information or from matters outside PAEC's reasonable control.

This may include losses associated with:

• Business decisions;
• Investment decisions;
• Third-party transactions;
• External websites;
• Third-party representations;
• Loss of business opportunities;
• Technical interruption; or
• Unauthorized acts of unrelated third parties.

Users remain responsible for independently evaluating commercial and professional decisions.

Nothing in these Terms is intended to exclude or limit liability where such exclusion or limitation would be unlawful.

23No Partnership or Agency Created by Website Use

Accessing the PAEC website, submitting an inquiry, attending an event, receiving information, or communicating with PAEC does not by itself establish:

• A legal partnership;
• Joint venture;
• Agency relationship;
• Employment relationship;
• Investment relationship;
• Fiduciary relationship; or
• Exclusive business relationship.

Any formal relationship with PAEC will be governed by the relevant written agreement, membership documentation, memorandum of understanding, contract, or other applicable documentation.

24Indemnification

To the extent permitted by applicable law, users may be responsible for losses or claims resulting from their own unlawful misuse of the website, infringement of third-party rights, fraudulent submissions, or material breach of these Terms.

This provision does not impose liability beyond what is permitted under applicable law.

25Suspension or Restriction of Access

PAEC may suspend, restrict, or block access to its website or particular digital facilities where reasonably necessary to:

• Protect website security;
• Investigate suspected misuse;
• Prevent fraud;
• Protect users or PAEC;
• Comply with legal requirements; or
• Address serious or repeated violations of these Terms.

26Changes to Website Services

PAEC may modify, add, remove, restructure, or discontinue website pages, services, programs, tools, directories, or features.

PAEC is not obligated to permanently maintain any particular website feature unless required under a separate written agreement.

27Changes to These Terms

PAEC may update these Terms periodically to reflect:

• Changes in its operations;
• New programs or services;
• Website developments;
• Legal or regulatory developments; or
• Changes to organizational practices.

The revised Terms will become effective when published on this page unless otherwise indicated.

The Last Updated date at the top of the page will identify the latest revision.

28Governing Law

These Terms and your use of the PAEC website are governed by the applicable laws of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, without limiting any mandatory rights that may apply to users under other applicable laws.

Subject to applicable law and any mandatory dispute-resolution requirements, disputes relating to these Terms or the website may be submitted to courts of competent jurisdiction in Karachi, Pakistan.

29Severability

If any provision of these Terms is determined to be invalid, unlawful, or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue to apply to the fullest extent permitted by law.

30No Waiver

A failure by PAEC to enforce a provision of these Terms on one occasion does not constitute a permanent waiver of that provision or any other right.

31Contact Us

For questions regarding these Terms of Use, please contact: