RAWALPINDI: The Ambassador of Sweden to Pakistan Ingrid Johansson paid a visit to the Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) here on Monday.
Addressing traders, the envoy said that Sweden is very keen on investing in Information Technology, telecom sector, renewable energy, education, academia, business development sector and environmental protection in Pakistan to further enhance the bilateral relation and assistance.
She urged Pakistan to train its population with a set of modern skills in new areas like start-ups, innovation and digitalisation, which are now major areas of sustainable economic development in Sweden.
She said Sweden desired to develop strong business contacts with Pakistan, and also focusing on the promotion of the small and medium enterprises in the country.
The Swedish ambassador informed that the bilateral trade volume between Pakistan and Sweden stood at around 370 million dollars. She said Sweden was in the lead in exporting renewable energy to the neighbouring countries and Pakistan can benefit from Swedish experience and this will help Pakistan to achieve sustainable economic growth.
Highlighting the European Union Legislation on Environment, which envisages the reduction of Greenhouse Gases emission below 40%, she said that Sweden is strictly complying with the European Union protocol on environmental protection. Ms Ingrid said Sweden has a population of ten million but had a higher GDP than Pakistan because we set on quality education ( primary education), capacity building and sustainable development. There is need to open market and I believe Pakistan has huge potential, she added.
She lauded RCCI’s efforts in promoting trade and investment activities in the region through exhibitions and business opportunity conferences.
Earlier, President RCCI Malik Shahid Saleem in his welcome address said that Pakistan economy is an emerging economy and it offers a vast scope of joint ventures in the fields of pharmaceuticals, energy, food processing, and information technology. He said that Pakistan is the best place for investment as things have remarkably improved. He urged envoy to improve people to people contacts and exchange of delegations. He also gave a short briefing on RCCI current and upcoming events.
