The Foreign Office is preparing a list of trade-oriented persons for appointment as honorary consuls-general in several countries that have potential of absorbing more exports from Pakistan.
Priority is being given to countries in the Far East where the Asean Regional Forum (ARF) recently adopted Pakistan as member. Similarly, the list includes a number of countries in Central Asia, Latin America, Africa and China.
Appointment to such positions to which either a native is eligible or the national of appointing nations is acceptable was recommended by the recently concluded conferences of envoys and trade representatives.
Elaborating the address of Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri at a dinner hosted for Ambassadors here on Friday night, a Foreign Office source said that the appointment of local marketing executives was also on the anvil and these will be funded from the Export Market Development Fund (EMDF).
The list of new honorary consuls-general, he said, was being discussed with Commerce Ministry and may be announced soon.
The Export Promotion Bureau, it is said, is also being mobilised to hold exhibitions of 'priority products' identified by each participant in the envoys conference in their country.
A scheme to set up warehouses of Pakistan's products in 'priority countries' is also being prepared and will be discussed during envoys' conferences in the Far East, Arab Gulf Co-operation Council (AGCC), Central Europe and Russia, he said.