LAHORE: The Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Monday congratulated the nation, President of China Xi Jingping, Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif and Chinese Ambassador Sun Weidong for operationalisation of Gwadar Port and opening of trade activities under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
The departure of the first trade fleet convoy at Gwadar Port was a new beginning and the government should take maximum economic advantage from this opportunity, LCCI President Abdul Basit, Senior Vice President Amjad Ali Jawa, Vice President Muhammad Nasir Hameed Khan and Executive Committee Members expressed these views in a joint media talk here Monday.
They said the LCCI also felicitated the entire nation for this great success that was bound to make Pakistan a developed country, adding that business community was very excited at this moment as the dream of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor had come true and the country had taken a a step towards economic stability.
They said that Pakistani nation was gratified to China for taking keen interest in economic development of Pakistan and safeguarding its interests.
The office-bearers said, this was the first time that Pakistan and China jointly handled a trade fleet and a large number of trading goods were exported through Gwadar Port.
They said that joint and cordial efforts of Pakistani and Chinese governments and Pakistan armed forces had attributed to success of this mega project that was delivering benefits to all the people of Pakistan as well as the region.
They said that Pakistan was blessed with a neighbour country like China.
They said that Pakistan and China were good friends and best partners, asserting that China-Pakistan friendship was a valuable asset of the two countries.
In the new era, the people of the two countries needed to enhance cooperation, strengthen mutual support and assistance, work together to realize dreams and uplift China-Pakistan strategic cooperative partnership to a higher level.
There was a dire need to avail full advantage of potential and friendly policies of Chinese government towards Pakistan, and though bilateral trade between the two countries was growing but it was no where near to the potential that existed on both sides, they viewed and cited that mutual trade between Pakistan and China could easily touch the figure of USD 15 billion within a couple of years.
They said Chinese importers might have better prospects for Pakistani goods particularly of carpets, leather and leather products, surgical equipment, sports goods, fruits and vegetables, rice, pharmaceuticals and cotton etc.
Most of our industrial units in these areas were ISO certified and were producing best quality products at competitive rates as compared with other countries in the region.
They suggested that joint ventures could be initiated in sectors like Construction, Hotels and Tourism; SMEs cluster development, Computer & Cellular chips, Textiles & Garments, Home Appliances, Corporate Farming, Seafood and Food Processing, Banks & Finance, Light Engineering etc.
Two most important areas where Pakistan needed urgent assistance were Energy and Agriculture.
They said that Pakistan was an agrarian society with tremendous potential in the agricultural sector, while China had expertise both in agriculture and agro-based industry and if some Joint Ventures were carried out, it would be mutually beneficial for both countries.
The increase in agricultural production would not only help in meeting our local demands but also enable us to export surplus quantity to China.
Besides this, the Aqua- farming and Seafood Processing could be the other potential areas for Joint Ventures in which both countries could make wonders.
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