Trade normalisation with India: Cabinet set to quiz commerce ministry officials

The federal Cabinet, which is scheduled to meet on Wednesday (today) with Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf in the chair, will quiz the Commerce Ministry on the benefits of trade normalisation with India, officials told Business Recorder. Pakistan has already promised Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to India from January 1 next year for which negative list of tradable items between the two countries will be phased out by December 31 this year.
The Cabinet, in its meeting, will ratify four pacts already signed between the two countries which are as follows: (i) agreement on co-operation in customs matters; (ii) bilateral co-operation agreement on mutual recognition between PSQCA and BIS; (iii) agreement on redressal of trade grievances; and (iv) and liberal visa regime.
The Commerce Ministry''s summary mentioned that prior approval of the Cabinet was obtained for negotiating these agreements with India. The Cabinet in its meeting on February 2 this year accorded approval to the signing of three agreements after they were vetted by the Law Ministry.
Both countries signed three trade related agreements during the 7th round of Commerce Secretary level talks held on September 20-21 this year at Islamabad. The Commerce Ministry has now requested to consider ratifying the three agreements. The Cabinet will also ratify a visa agreement between Pakistan and India which was signed on September 8 this year at Islamabad. The Cabinet accorded its approval to signing the agreement in its meeting on September 5. The objective of the agreement is to provide travel facilities to nationals of the two countries desiring to visit the other.
The Cabinet will accord ex-post facto approval of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) between Board of Investment (BoI) Pakistan and Concentrix (CX) and Solar Korea Co Limited. CX, a subsidiary of German Company Concentrix Solar GMbH, is a Solar Energy Solution Korean Company. During the recent visit of the Primer Minister of Pakistan to Seoul (Korea) to attend the Nuclear Summit, CX Solar called on the Prime Minister and maintained that their technology was the latest and two times more efficient compared to the existing Photo Voltaic (PV) technology and it is best suited for Pakistani conditions. They offered to set up a solar unit at the Prime Minister''s House as a pilot project.
As a follow up of their meeting with the Prime Minister of Pakistan in Seoul, a four member delegation of CX Solar led by Dr CHOI, Moon-sook, CEO, visited Pakistan from April 30 to May 8 this year. The delegation visited Karachi, Islamabad and Quetta. In Islamabad, the delegation visited the premises of Prime Minister House and held meetings with Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC), National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) and Alternate Energy Development Board (AEDB).
CX Solar showed interest in signing a MoU with BoI with the objective of promoting collaboration, enhancing knowledge and becoming more efficient by sharing of information and expertise without giving rise to any legally binding or enforceable rights and obligations on the part of either party. And to participate in solar power plants construction projects in Pakistan''s industrial area.
The sources said that the Prime Minister would also take the cabinet into confidence about his meeting with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia during his stay in Saudi Arabia. The Cabinet will also discus law and order situation in the country, especially in Karachi.