A delegation of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has planned to visit five countries to explore trade and investment opportunities. LCCI President Almas Hyder stated this while addressing a 27-member delegation of foreign diplomats from West Africa, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Nepal, Thailand, Kenya, China, West Indies, Maldives, South Africa, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Cambia and various other countries, led by Director Program Shahbaz Malik.
Pakistan secures one of the most important geographic locations which made this country a principal gateway to the energy rich Central Asian Republics while sharing borders with economic giants like China, he said.
Almas Hyder said that Pakistan provides the shortest link to the Central Asian Republics and China and is sure to become the trade and energy corridor to these countries in near future. One Belt One Road Initiative has already laid the foundation for it and CPEC is all set to transform this dream into a reality.
"Pakistan has a rich and diverse economic base. Our economic activities range from agriculture based raw material to aircraft manufacturing. Our economy has proved itself to be one of the most resilient economies of the world. Despite challenges, we are doing our level best to exploit the immense potential abundantly available in almost all sectors of the economy," he added.
LCCI Vice President Fahim-ur-Rehman Saigal gave a detailed overview o f the Pakistan's economy. Chairman Foreign Service Academy Shahbaz Malik said the academy offers a six weeks training program to the foreign diplomats. The purpose of the training is to give the actual image of Pakistan to the world. During question-answer session, diplomat from Azerbaijan said that the image of Pakistan is very good in Azerbaijan and the credit goes to the ambassadors of both sides and the effective role of embassies.
Diplomat from Kenya said that Pakistan should get full advantages from Free Africa Trade Agreement. He expressed his interest to have business in Pakistan to which LCCI president invited him to sign an MoU with the Lahore Chamber. He said that Pakistan is ready to export experienced farmers to many countries.
Kyrgyzstan 's representative said that there are a lot of fields in Kyrgyzstan for the Pakistani investors. "We should work to enhance trade volume between the two countries." Diplomat from Uganda said that there is huge trade deficit between the two countries. Uganda's import from Pakistan is US $258 million but the export to Pakistan is meagre.