CM discusses Afghan situation with diplomats from Iran, other states

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah in his separate meetings with diplomats of Qatar, Iran and Kazakhstan stressed the need of developing close cooperation between the neighbouring countries so that peace, trade and commerce could be promoted in the region, particularly in the backdrop of current situation in Afghanistan.

The chief minister, in his meeting with the Ambassador of Qatar, Sheikh Saoud Abdul Rehman Al Thani, said that a Qatari company was working on a water supply scheme in Thar. "We want to see more Qatari companies come and work with the provincial government on their own, or on public private partnership (PPP) mode," he said and added that Sindh has vast opportunities in desalination plants, roads, energy, and various other sectors.

They also discussed the situation in the region after withdrawal of the US forces from Afghanistan. The ambassador was accompanied with Mishal Muhammad A A Al-Ansari, Consul General State of Qatar. The chief minister, while discussing investment opportunities with the Ambassador of Kazakhstan, Yerzhan Kistafin said that the province of Sindh was producing 70 percent of natural gas. He added that the Sindh government has its own company which also participates in gas projects.

We would like to work with Kazakhstan's state and private firms in gas-related projects. The ambassador assured the chief minister that he would invite investors of his country to invest in Sindh. He said that his country was launching a direct flight from Pakistan to facilitate the investors and tourists.

The chief minister and Kazakhstan Ambassador agreed to declare Karachi and a city of Kazakhstan as sister cities. It was also agreed to establish people-to-people contacts by exchanging delegations between the two countries.

Separately, an eight-member delegation of Iran led by Ahmed Amir Abadi Farahani, Chairman of Iran-Pakistan Friendship Group and Hassan Nourian Consul General called on Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah at the CM House. They discussed investment opportunities in Sindh, regional situations and cooperation in education.

The chief minister said that he had visited Mashhad in 2019 and found it one of the cleanest cities of the world. "We would appreciate it if the Iranian firms working in solid waste management work with the Sindh government to launch solid waste management projects in the province." The Iranian delegation assured the chief minister that they would start negotiations with the concerned department in Sindh to explore opportunities for investment.

Shah said that in the past the Persian was the official language of Sindh. He suggested that a mechanism may be evolved to promote the Persian language in Sindh.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021