Envoy speaks about mutual trade prospects: Vietnam, Pakistan can complement each other

KARACHI: Ambassador of Vietnam in Pakistan, Nguyen Tien Phong Friday said that business communities of both the countries should not think that being big producers and competitors in rice and textiles, we cannot cooperate; in fact, he emphasized, we can beautifully complement each other for a win-win mechanism.

Speaking at a meeting Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), he expressed his profound and enthusiastic desire that Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) between Pakistan and Vietnam should be signed through fast-tracking the initiative and should then be implemented effectively to multiply the trade volumes.

Nguyen Tien Phong added that he will certainly relay the concerns and suggestions on visa regime back to their ministry’s head office in Vietnam and he also wants to increase the duration of business visas for Pakistani businessmen from six months to one year.

He maintained that the bilateral trade volume of $600 million per year is just not sufficient and it can be taken to $5 to 10 billion given the true potential for exponential growth over the upcoming years; for this he strongly emphasized on the visits of businessmen from Pakistan to Vietnam and vice versa.

Hanif Lakhany, VP FPCCI, expressed his desire to elevate and expand bilateral trade relations of Pakistan and Vietnam; as there is untapped potential in a number of sectors and that can result in exponential growth in trade.

He said that he is pleasantly surprised to see the smart, energetic, committed and vibrant ambassador of Vietnam in Pakistan.

He also emphasized that Vietnam should consider investing in Smartphone and computer chips, parts and accessories in Pakistan as Vietnam is one of the most advanced large-scale producers in the sector.

Suleman Chawla said that he will strive for strengthening and enriching the economic and commercial ties between the two countries from the platform of apex chamber. He added that first it is Business-Business (B2B) relations that translate into Government-to-Government (G2G) relations later through creating interdependencies and shared prosperities.

Zakaria Usman, former President of FPCCI, mentioned meat & meat products, fruits & vegetables, workforce export, culture & tourism, business visits & exhibitions and investments & joint ventures as the potential areas of bilateral cooperation with Vietnam.

Sultan Rehman, former VP FPCCI, said that the enthusiasm, sincerity and open-door policy of Ambassador Phong has inspired and enlightened us all and we will be reaching out to Vietnamese Embassy in Islamabad and trade office in Karachi to explore new avenues of cooperation.

Amjad Rafi, Convener of International Forums at FPCCI, said that Vietnam should open its doors to Pakistani business and trade community; and, they will create the bridges and linkages on their own with their fellow businessmen in Vietnam and counterpart chambers as well.

He also called for an active Pakistan-Vietnam Joint Business Council to provide a platform and act as a working group of the relevant business leaders of the two countries.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022