ISLAMABAD: Sadiq Sanjrani, Senate Chairman said that Gwadar was emerging as a new port city of Pakistan and was destined to become a hub of industrial and investment activities, therefore, business community should gear up itself to fully capitalize on the emerging opportunities of business and investment in Gwadar and Balochistan.

He said this while talking to a delegation of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry that called on him led by President Muhammad Ahmed Waheed. Sajida Zulfiqar MNA and former Vice President PFCCI was also present at the occasion. Saif ur Rehman Khan Vice President ICCI and Malik Sohail Hussain former Senior Vice President ICCI and Chief Coordinator UBG FPCCI were in the delegation.

Sadiq Sanjrani said that Gwadar offered great prospects for businessmen and investors and they should focus on Gwadar for achieving lucrative returns. He further said that business community was the backbone of the economy and their problems should be addressed on priority basis to promote ease of doing business in the country. He said the way the local business community has fought back against the impact of Covid-19 was appreciable and it showed their resilience to survive in tough conditions.

MNA Sajida Zulfiqar expressing her views, briefed the ICCI delegation about the potential investment opportunities in tourism sector in KPK. She said that KPK has huge potential for tourism, but lack of resources was a constraint in promoting tourism infrastructure. She emphasized that business community should partner with the government in promoting tourism industry that would boost local and foreign tourism in the country.

Speaking at the occasion, Muhammad Ahmed Waheed, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry said that the government has offered an attractive package to construction industry due to which the construction activity has picked up momentum. He said that similar kind of package should be offered to other major industries, especially for investing in industrial zones including Gwadar that would start a new phase of rapid industrialization in Pakistan and put it on the path of fast economic growth.

He suggested that an investment conference on tourism should be organized in KPK to unlock the tourism potential of the province. He said that Pakistan-Turkey FTA was in final stages and urged that Pakistan should finalize FTA with Turkey as early as possible that would remove trade barriers and give boost to bilateral trade between the two countries.

Saif-ur-Rehman Khan Vice President ICCI and Malik Sohail Hussain former Senior Vice President ICCI/Chief Coordinator UBG FPCCI appreciated the government's initiative for working to automate the legislative process that would address manual hindrances and speed up the legislative process in the country.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020