LAHORE: Pakistan and Turkey need to promote cooperation in agriculture, industrial, trade, science, education and other sectors including technological advancements. The consensus was developed at a meeting between 30-member Turkish delegation and the Executive Committee Members of Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) on Saturday.
Both the sides agreed that the deep-rooted relations between Pakistan and Turkey should be translated into trade and economic terms in the larger interests of the people of the two sides. The visit to Pakistan provided an opportunity to the Turkish delegates to have first-hand knowledge about available business openings in Pakistan.
The delegates while exchanging their views said that both the countries have marvelous but as-yet-untapped business potential that needs to be realised by maximising the involvement of private sectors of the two countries. The Turkish delegates hoped that the economic relation between the two countries would strengthen further to create a win-win situation for Pakistan and Turkey.
In his address, the head of Turkish delegation and Vice President Business Tuskon Federation, Dogan Kaynak said that Turk people attach great importance to Pakistan, consider it their second home and this was the only reason that they had expressed solidarity with their brothers and sisters by celebrating Eid in Pakistan. He said that the Turkish people in general and the business community in particular would continue to support Pakistan in the days to come. He said that the delegates during their visit to Pakistan gained ample information about available business opportunities and would surely be coming back with good investment proposals.
Speaking on the occasion, the LCCI President Shahzad Ali Malik thanked the Turkish delegation for celebrating Eid with flood victims in Pakistan. He said that it speaks volumes about Turkish people having love for their brothers and sisters in Pakistan.
The LCCI President said that the LCCI is taking immediate and concrete steps to enhance the volume of trade between the two countries from existing $663 million to $2 billion. He said in order to achieve the target, focused and collaborative efforts would be made.
Shahzad Ali Malik said that Turkey would be focused this year for exploring trade and business opportunities and to achieve the goal a strong linkage would be established with Turkish businessmen for having market access to Europe, North Africa and Middle East.
The LCCI President said that the LCCI through its own efforts is continuously working on an agenda of closer cooperation between Turkey and Pakistan. To supplement these efforts, we have established Turkey-Pakistan Business Council by signing an agreement with Foreign Economic Relations Board, Turkey.
He said that the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Lahore chamber and Istanbul Chamber of Commerce and Industry needs to be reinforced. The LCCI President also lauded the efforts made by Chief Minister Punjab Mian Shahbaz Sharif for strengthening the linkages among the business communities of Turkey and Pakistan. He said that the role of Punjab Board of Investment and Trade (PBIT) is quite exemplary as they are organizing conferences like they held in April 2010 in Lahore where over 200 leading CEOs of both the countries were engaged to discuss ways of exploring investment opportunities for Turkish companies in Punjab. Shahzad Ali Malik said that Pakistan was in dire need of Turkish expertise in the food processing and agriculture sectors. The LCCI is giving top priority to these two sectors because the recent floods have destroyed agriculture and food industry.
The LCCI President said that in the wake of the recent floods, the country is going to initiate the process of reconstruction of infrastructure, bridges and road networks in the devastated areas, the Turkish construction companies would find ample opportunities to collaborate with Pakistani businessmen.
Earlier, the LCCI signed an MoU with ANEED (Anatolian Businessmen Federation) working under the umbrella of Business Tuskon Confederation, ANEED, Turkey — a federation committed to making a valuable contribution to the nation’s economic development through the promotion of trade and industry.
via Daily Times – Leading News Resource of Pakistan – Pak, Turkey to enhance trade ties.
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