ISLAMABAD: A delegation of International Federation of Freight Forwarders Association (FIATA) headed by its President Babar Badat, called on Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. Minister for Commerce Pervaiz Malik, Special Assistant to PM Haroon Akhtar , Minister of State for Industries and Production Sardar Muhammad Arshad Khan Laghari and FBR Chairman Tariq Mehmood Pasha were also present during the meeting.
The delegation included Huxiang Zhao, ex-President FIATA, Robert A Voltman, Francesco S Parisi, Ivan Petrov, Basil Pietersen, Turgut Erkeskin and Hans Gunther. Welcoming FIATA delegation to Pakistan, the prime minister said that growing economy of Pakistan, with a growth rate of around 5.5 percent, offered huge business opportunities in diverse areas including logistics and transport sectors. He said that with an addition of over 1,800 km of 6-lane motorways and various other highways and expressways, Pakistan’s huge road infrastructure could be utilized by the logistics companies for not only catering to the domestic requirements of a growing economy but of the entire region.
The prime minister said that after successful completion of the CPEC project, Pakistan was poised to serve as a hub for enhancing regional trade and connectivity especially for land-locked Afghanistan and the Central Asian states. He said that CPEC has opened up new vistas of opportunities not only for Pakistan but for the entire region. These economic opportunities, he continued, must be utilized for creating a win-win situation, continued the prime minister.
Babar Badat and his delegation said that FIATA was keen to expand its footprints in Pakistan in view of huge business opportunities after the construction of huge road infrastructure under the umbrella of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Project. The Prime Minister assured the delegation that Government would provide every possible support to FIATA in undertaking profitable business ventures in the country.
