87-member delegation of 45th Course of Pakistan Navy War College, headed by Rear Admiral M Amjad Khan Niazi visited the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) on Friday to get awareness about the role of business community for economic well being of the country.
LCCI Senior Vice President Almas Hyder while addressing the delegation has said, "We have to take full advantage of our best strategic location and vast minerals." He also shared his expertise with the visiting officers on economic challenges, energy, federal budget, trade deficit, Pak-China Economic Corridor and millennium development goals and said that Pakistan has the ability, not only become the regional leader but can also play a decisive role at global level.
He said that strong public-private partnership could help surmounting the unprecedented economic challenges being faced by the country. LCCI is making efforts to promote trade and investment in the country through enacting upon the policies of the government and securing a business friendly environment in the country, he said.
"The primary objective of LCCI is to protect the interests of the business community while remaining committed to the cause of development of the country. There are a number of issues which must be tackled on priority basis, the biggest one is how to keep the momentum of growth in the wake of a less than targeted growth of the agriculture and the manufacturing sector. The second one is the widening gap between exports and imports that could be contained by reducing import of luxury items. The low input cost could make Pakistani products competitive in the international market where Pakistan was losing the international markets to China, India and even Bangladesh," he said.
He stressed the need for developing regional, product specific and target oriented marketing strategy. New markets and new products need to be explored to reduce country's dependence on few commodities and countries.
He further said LCCI also keeps liaison with foreign missions' commercial sections and an exchange of information ensured especially sector reports.
He said, "Ease of Doing Business Index gives one a quick way of comparing different countries.