WTO trade opportunities: need for active public-private sector collaboration stressed

President of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Ijaz Ahmad Mumtaz has urged the need for active collaboration between public and private sectors to avail vast trade opportunities presented by the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Mumtaz, while warmly welcoming European Union's Trade Related Technical Assistance (TRTA-II) for Pakistan, said that training on WTO trade facilitation agreement provides a unique opportunity to deepen understanding of its commercial and economic implications and the emerging multilateral trading system.
Speaking at EU funded Trade Related Technical Assistance (TRTA-II) programme on "WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation: Opportunities and way forward for Pakistan private sector" organised on Wednesday by the International Trade Centre (ITC), the president LCCI added that consultative mechanism between public and private sector for policy formulation and implementation will enhance acceptability and implementation of the policies at national and provincial levels.
Dr Manzoor Ahmad, former Ambassador of Pakistan to WTO, Bruno Valanzuolo, Chief Technical Advisor, TRTA-II Pakistan and Edna Ramirez, International Expert on Trade Facilitation delivered presentations covering various aspects of WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement while M Owais Khan, Programme Officer International Trade Centre (ITC) and Director PITAD, Fawad Hussain shared their views about EU's TRTA-II programme.
The training session was organised by the International Trade Centre under Component 1 of the EU funded TRTA II programme in association with LCCI, Punjab Commerce and Investment department. M Owais Khan, Programme Officer International Trade Centre, while highlighting the salient features of Trade Related Technical Assistance (TRTA-II) programme, informed that that European Union has funded this programme with an objective to help Pakistan in building necessary capacity to address trade related issues.
The specific purpose is to support economic integration of Pakistan into the global and regional economy and to stimulate decent work and employment creation by increasing exports and enhancing the enabling climate for international trade, he added.