ISLAMABAD: A delegation of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry led by Senior Vice President Muhammad Naveed Malik visited Morocco and Qatar to explore possibilities of further improving trade and exports with these countries. Malik Najeeb, Imran Minhas and Sardar Zahid were in the delegation. During the visit to Qatar, the delegation visited Pakistan Embassy in Doha and met with Murad Baseer, Counselor/Deputy Head of Mission.
Speaking at the occasion, Muhammad Naveed Malik, Senior Vice President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry said that Qatar was importing many products from other countries to meet its needs and the purpose of visiting Qatar was to explore prospects for Pakistani products in Qatari market. He said that despite enjoying friendly relations, Pak-Qatar bilateral trade could not reach even $200 million and there was a dire need to make strong efforts on both sides to improve it.
He said that Pakistan Embassy in Doha should conduct market studies about the potential of Pakistani products in Qatar and share such information with ICCI so that business community could take benefit of untapped business opportunities in Qatari market. He stressed that Pakistan and Qatar should focus on frequent exchange of trade delegations so that private sectors could explore new avenues of mutual cooperation.
Addressing the delegation, Murad Baseer, Counselor/Deputy Head of Mission, Pakistan Embassy, Doha, Qatar said that Pakistan has good potential to export many products to Qatar including processed/packaged/frozen, non-frozen food, fresh fruits & vegetables, textiles, sports goods & sportswear, construction materials, pharmaceuticals, food and pharma packaging, medical/surgical disposables, FMCG and personal care products, consumer electronics, light engineering goods, hunting & camping equipment and defense equipment. He stressed that Pakistani exporters should step up efforts to enhance the trade of these products with Qatar.
He said the best way of further improving trade relations between the two countries was to develop strong linkages between the private sectors of both countries. He assured that Pakistan Embassy in Qatar would fully cooperate with ICCI in bringing private sectors of both countries closer so that they could identify new areas of mutual cooperation.
