Pakistan-Cambodia ties: Alvi stresses need for realising full potential of cooperation

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi has said there is an immense scope of improvement in investment, trade and business between Cambodia and Pakistan, and the cooperative ties need to be realised to their fullest potential.

He said that for both the countries garment and textile sectors acted as the backbone of their economies, which could be further developed by creating linkages between their stakeholders.

The president made these remarks while talking to chairman of the Board of Directors of World Bridge Group of Companies, Cambodia, Neak Okhna Sear Rithy, who called on him at the Aiwan-e-Sadr on Tuesday.

During the meeting, the president highlighted the opportunities for investment in healthcare, real estate, energy, agriculture, housing, construction, marble, granite, pre-fabricated houses and tourism sectors of Pakistan.

He said Pakistan possessed vast landscapes, different climate zones, Buddhist archaeological sites, mountains, beaches, rivers, vast deserts and the fertile lands of Punjab and Sindh, which offered tremendous opportunities for investment in the field of tourism.

The president said both the countries had small and medium enterprises and their linkages with each other in the transfer of technology, training and skills and exchanging goods and services could benefit the SME sectors of both countries.

He said that Cambodia had a rich experience in prefabricated and low-cost houses, which could be constructed in a limited time period. These prefabricated houses could be considered while providing houses to the flood affectees as well as to the lower and middle classes of the country, he added.

The president said that Pakistan was encouraging its population and the youth to seek marketable skills, especially in the IT sector, and was equipping them with digital skills through online courses to enable them to earn a decent living. He said that cooperation with Cambodia in this regard would also benefit both countries.

Sear said that they were looking for cooperation in the fields of textiles and imports of raw materials, logistics, property development, technology, food and beverages, media, hospitality, e-commerce, banking and security sectors. He said the delegation would conduct market surveys to assess the potential for trade, business and investment between the two countries.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022