ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are going to hold the 1th Session of Pakistan-Saudi Arabia Joint Ministerial Commission during the current month. In this regard, the Ministry of Commerce is finalizing the preparations and has conveyed a tentative schedule along with dates for the JMC session to the Saudi Arabian counterpart. However, response from Saudi Arabian side is awaited.
The bilateral trade between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia is on the rise for the past few years. Balance of trade is in favour of Saudi Arabia as Pakistan imports most of its oil from Saudi Arabia.
Economic relations between the two countries have great potential and are not commensurate with the warmth of political relations. Pakistan’s exports to the Kingdom are merely 1.77 % of our total exports.
They are mainly confined to textile and food items and the share of manufactured products is very low. Likewise, the bulk of our imports from the Kingdom consist of oil and related products. There is a great potential to further diversify bilateral trade and economic relations.
“10th session of JMC was held in Riyadh in April 2014 and then it was decided to hold the next 11th meeting of JMC in 2015, but both sides could not hold the meeting due to a number of reasons” a well placed source at MoC told Customs Today.
A centerpiece of the bilateral economic and commercial relations is the Joint Ministerial Commission between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. Its first session was held in 2007 and for this reason, reviving the commission became a priority for both sides in the last few years.
The 9th session of Pakistan Saudi Arabia Joint Ministerial Commission convened in Islamabad on September 26, 2012. The Saudi delegation on the occasion consisted of about a dozen senior officials from various ministries.
During the Joint Ministerial Commission meeting, the source said that the two countries agreed to make maximum effort to increase and expand scope of trade cooperation between private sector corporations, facilitate market access and remove tariff and non-tariff barriers.
Both sides agreed that Pakistan Saudi Joint Business Council would hold its meetings regularly and deliberate the means and measures for augmenting the trade exchange volume and joint ventures in the two countries. In this regard, the source added that a follow-up meeting was held in Islamabad in March 2013 to assess the status of implantation of the decisions of the Joint Commission.
Earlier, the source said that in 200, Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI) and Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce & Industry (CSCCI) signed an MOU establish a Joint Business Council. Later, Assharqia Chamber Dammam and Lahore Chamber signed MoU of Cooperation in 2009 and MoU proved helpful in increasing interaction between the two chambers through exchange of data and delegations.
The source further said that Saudi government had planned to spend $373 billion on social development and infrastructure projects and boost in Saudi economy would provide great opportunities for Pakistani entrepreneurs and traders.
In this regard, the source observed that Pakistan had good experience in Lease Financing and with the advent of Leasing Laws in the Kingdom; Pakistani leasing firms can offer their knowledge and expertise to Saudi firms. There is also potential for firms that specialize in IT solutions for the Banking, Securities and Insurances industries. They should explore the possibilities in Saudi Financial Market.
