ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has great potential to expand business relations with France as it was an important economy of European Union and Pakistani private sector should adopt a proactive approach to explore new avenues of promoting trade and exports with French counterparts.
This was observed by Pakistan’s Ambassador-designate to France Moin ul Haque while interacting with business community at Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI). He visited ICCI along with Ahmed Irfan Aslam, Commercial Counselor-designate to France to exchange views with local private sector on further enhancing trade and economic relations with France.
The Ambassador-designate said that he would further strengthen the economic side of his Embassy so that it could play more effective role in enhancing trade relations between France and Pakistan. He said his Embassy would conduct sector-wise and product-wise studies of French Market and would share such information with local Chambers of Commerce so that businessmen could make efforts to exploit potential business opportunities in France. He said mega expos of textiles, furniture and food products would be held in France and Pakistani businessmen should ensure maximum participation in these expos to explore new areas of mutual cooperation.
He said an investment conference was being planned in France in September-October this year to highlight investment potential of Pakistan’s economy for French investors. He said France was showing great interest in CPEC projects and his Embassy would play role in bringing French investment to Pakistan. He said ICCI should explore the possibility of taking a delegation to France and his Embassy would facilitate in making its visit successful.
Speaking at the occasion, ICCI President Atif Ikram Sheikh said that $ 1.5 billion bilateral trade between France and Pakistan was not reflecting true potential of both countries and trade diversification was the way forward to further improve bilateral trade between the two countries. He said many Pakistani products including sports goods, surgical instruments, leather products, gloves of all sorts, textiles items, sports wears, uniforms & accessories, musical instruments, kitchen ware, cutlery items and military uniform badges could find good market in France and Pakistan Embassy in France should cooperate in promoting their exports with France.
He said many sectors of Pakistan’s economy including energy, agriculture, transport, construction, pharmaceutical, health, water and sanitization and utilities offered great potential to foreign investors and Pakistan Embassy in France should try to convince French investors to give more focus to Pakistan for investment and joint ventures. He said the Embassy should share market study reports with local Chambers of Commerce on regular basis so that private sector could take advantage of potential opportunities for promoting exports with France.
