Zardari invites Italian businessmen

Leading Italian investors, business executives and industrialists evinced keen interest for investment in diverse fields including agriculture, transport, oil and gas, textile, infrastructure and other sectors at an Investment Conference presided over by President Asif Ali Zardari here Tuesday. Addressing the Investment Colloquium, President Zardari said Pakistan is a hub of future economic ventures with enormous untapped potentials which dishes out tremendous opportunities for foreign investment.
Expressing gratitude for support and co-operation extended by Italian government, the President flanked by Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said Pakistan looked forward to Italian investors and businessmen to capitalising on hospitable investment climate laced with prospects and opportunities in different fields.
The President invited the Italian businessmen and entrepreneurs to invest in Pakistan offering them host of incentives including Special Economic Zones. The Conference was also addressed by the Italian Foreign Minister and a number of business tycoons and investors, held at Italian Foreign Ministry auditorium here.
A comprehensive and threadbare presentation was made on the occasion by Chairman, Board of Investment Saleem Mandviwalla portraying and showcasing prospects and potentials for foreign investment in variant sectors. An impressive presentation unveiled the incentives and concessions, tailored for the Foreign Direct Investment in Pakistan which evoked tangible interest among the Italian investors and industrialists.
Referring to the challenges posed by terrorism, the President said the entire world was with Pakistan and the menace would be combated. Pakistan was lent huge support and assistance from the forum of Friends of Democratic Pakistan, he said adding democracy was in place in Pakistan which was major strength to addressing the problems.
"Let''s look forward and forget the past. Democratic fabric is in place. We will handle this problem (terrorism)", he said further urging the Italian businessmen and investors to come forward and work in diverse areas against huge potentials and opportunities as their investment will be extended insurance cover.
He lauded active role and support of Italy for Pakistan at the FoDP forum. The President further said Pakistan is a responsible state and the country cannot afford the non-state actors to take over adding, such situation can not be allowed to be flourished.
Meanwhile, President Asif Ali Zardari called for enhanced access to the markets of European Union stressing that it was key to helping Pakistan on economic horizons. During his meeting with the Italian President Giorgio Napolitano in the presidential palace, Zardari said it is important that the European world also takes into account the impact of militancy on a nation while considering access to its markets.
The present criterion of a nation''s development status alone determining the access to markets needed to be revisited, the President added. Briefing newsmen after the talks, the spokesman to the President and former senator Farhatullah Babar said that the matter relating to increased co-operation with Italy in the areas of agriculture, edible oil, leather, export of semi-skilled and unskilled manpower and technology for marble mining and cutting also came under discussion.
The President said Pakistan looked forward to increased Pak-Italy co-operation in these areas. He said availability of marble mining, cutting and Italian technology would be of great help in assisting the people of Swat and Buner who had suffered grievously due to the militants'' actions and where there were huge marble resources.
Zardari also appreciated Italian assistance for the displaced people of Swat and Malakand and also for its gesture of swapping the official debt. The President lauded Italy for its support to Pakistan in the EU on the crucial issue of enhanced market access through the GSP Plus scheme and the Free Trade Agreement.
Elaborating the fight against militancy and the difficulties encountered, President Zardari recounted historical background as how the extremists and militants were created decades ago.
The spokesman further said the President told his counterpart during the talks that militants were created as a result of a deliberate policy by the free world to employ religious fanaticism for the achievement of certain strategic objectives. A novel strategy was adopted that employed exploitation of religion to motivate Muslims around the world to wage Jehad, President Zardari said.