QUETTA: Balochistan Chief Minister Dr Abdul Malik Baloch has offered maximum incentives for the local and foreign investors who want to invest in different sectors in the province.

Speaking at the Balochistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) here on Friday, he said that Balochistan had great potential for investment specially in mineral, agriculture, livestock and other sectors.

Provincial Minister for Public Health Engineering Nawab Ayaz Khan Jogezai, Sports Minister Mir Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Muhammad Hasni and BCCI President Musa Khan Nurzai also spoke on the occasion.

Dr Baloch said that his government would provide all facilities and protection to the investors and their investment in the province.

“No society can make progress without investment,” he said, adding that the local investors needed help and cooperation of the national institutions for investment and establishing industries in Balochistan.

He said the Balochistan government could not provide hundreds of thousands of jobs to the jobless youths due to its limited resources. He said that with investment in various sectors maximum jobs could be created for the youth.

“We have to move from consumer society to productive society,” he said.

“Our 70 per cent minerals are being spoilt due to use of old methods of mining in the province,” he said.

He said that Balochistan had a long coastline and due to lack of facilities fishermen were not getting due return on the fishing products.

He assured the members of the BCCI that his government would make all possible efforts to boost trade with Iran and Afghanistan. “We are approaching the federal government for establishing trade centres at four places near all the three borders,” Dr Baloch remarked.

He said the BCCI should send suggestions to the provincial government for boosting trade and establishing industry in the province. The government, he said, would take steps to implement the proposals.

Mr Nurzai while presenting the welcome address lauded the government’s efforts for making Gwadar port functional and said that it would help in boosting economy of the province.

He said that Balochistan’s traders had been engaged in different trades through Middle East, Iran and Afghanistan for centuries and the process was still going on.

Published in Dawn, January 10th, 2015

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