Three Pakistani ministers urged their compatriots living in the US to invest in the development of the country while assuring them of stepped-up efforts to resolve the problems they faced here and at home.
Minister of State for Overseas Pakistanis Senator Tariq Azim Khan, Minister for State for Interior Shahzad Wasim and Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Northern Areas Makhdoom Faisal Saleh Hayat said that the investment climate in Pakistan had vastly improved and opportunities were limitless.
The country has made rapid advances on all fronts, especially in the economic field where the growth rate had exceeded eight percent, second only to China.
The ministers were speaking at a convention of overseas Pakistanis at the Consulate General of Pakistan in New York on Sunday at which Pakistanis living here pointed out their certain problems in the US and with regard to investment in Pakistan.
The ministers assured overseas Pakistanis that action against the Qabza groups would be taken under the recent law to deal with the problem of land grabbing. They vowed to make efforts to get resolved their problems on this count. They highlighted the 'enlightened' policies being pursued by President Pervez Musharraf that have brought credit to Pakistan.
Senator Tariq Azim Khan said: "President Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, together with Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, make a 'dream team', which is working hard to make Pakistan strong and prosperous."
The convention was also addressed by senior officials accompanying the ministers, who updated them on a range of projects that needed investments in Pakistan.
At the outset, Pakistan's ambassador to US Jehangir Karamat welcomed the delegates from across the country, saying they were Pakistan's most precious assets. He said he was aware of the difficulties they were facing since 9/11 - visa delays, racial profiling at several fronts, including at airports and immigration.
The ambassador gave the assurance that he and other officers of the Pakistan embassy were working on various fronts at the US State Department in an effort to alleviate their sufferings. As a result, he said progress was being made.