LAHORE: Argentine wants to enhance trade and economic ties with Pakistan. The Pakistani businessmen should establish partnerships with their Argentinian counterparts as the country offers huge opportunities in the fields of agriculture and livestock.
These views were expressed by the Deputy Head of the Commercial Section Guido Maiulini and Head of the Consular Section, Embassy of Argentina Maria Carmela Mirabelli while talking to the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) President Abdul Basit here at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry. The LCCI Vice President Muhammad Nasir Hameed Khan, Executive Committee Members Mian Zahid Javed, Tahir Manzoor Chaudhry, Nadeem Qureshi, Muhammad Arshad Chaudhry, Mian Abdul Razzaq and Khamis Saeed Butt were also present in the meeting.
The Argentinean delegation, who spent well over an hour at the LCCI, threw light on a number of issues hampering the bilateral trade between the two countries and forwarded various proposals to give boost to two-way trade. They said that Argentina could extend technical assistance to Pakistan in the agriculture field.
The LCCI President Abdul Basit said that the agriculture sector of Pakistan continues to be the single largest and dominant driving force for growth as well as the main source of livelihood for 66% of Pakistan’s population. It has a lot of potential to grow but due to lack of required resources, knowledge, experience and technology, it is battling hard to survive. He said that the concept of corporate farming is picking up in Pakistan but its proportion is too small to make any impact on the performance of this sector. Similarly, the percentage of per acre production in agriculture sector is at lower side as compared to other countries. Around 40% of our agri-produce is wasted in the form of post-harvest losses due to lack of preservation and transportation facilities.
“We know that with the help of required technology and knowledge, this sector can be transformed into a high yielding industry. The economy of Argentina is twice of the size of Pakistan economy and it is ranked among the world’s major agriculture producers”, the LCCI President said and added that Argentina and Pakistan have many things in common as both countries are known for cash and food crops all over the globe. Argentina is better off in terms of having technology and modern machinery to maintain high level of yield and optimum value addition with the help of well-established agro food industry.
He said that if we could succeed in developing an across border network among the key players of this sector then both Argentina and Pakistan can attain win-win situation.
The LCCI Vice President Muhammad Nasir Hameed Khan said that the Embassy of Argentina can become a reliable source of disseminating trade related information to curtail communication gap. He also stressed the need to undertake frequent activities like exchange of business delegations, participation in trade fairs & exhibitions etc., to ensure a continuous liaison. He said that closer interaction between the Chambers of the two countries can be highly beneficial. We should work on establishing stronger trade links between two countries and explore further areas of joint ventures. He said that with this little sharing of information, I once again thank you for your visit to the Lahore Chamber.
