RAWALPINDI: Kazakhstan attaches great importance to diplomatic and trade relations with Pakistan. Thirty years ago, on this very day, diplomatic relations were established on the occasion of the visit of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev to Pakistan.

This was pointed out by Ambassador of Kazakhstan Yerzhan Kistafin on Thursday.

“A business council is being formed comprising two members from the chamber. Co-operation between the business community and the private sector is needed to enhance bilateral trade relations.

“The visit of today’s trade delegation is part of efforts for bringing the business community of the two countries closer,” he said.

A Kazakhstani business delegation visited the Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI), led by the ambassador and included representatives from the construction, education, food, healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors.

The bilateral trade volume is very low and needs to be enhanced, he added.

RCCI President Nadeem Rauf said that the bilateral trade volume between Pakistan and Kazakhstan is less than $1 million. Direct flights should be started between the two countries and the banking system should be improved to increase bilateral trade, he said, adding pharmaceuticals, rice, marble, construction materials, poultry and tourism are promising sectors in which mutual trade can be increased.

He said there should an exchange of delegations at the chamber level to enhance networking. Afterwards, he gave a short briefing to the trade delegation on RCCI’s current and future programmes.

RCCI Group Leader Sohail Altaf said that Central Asia is an important trading region and Pakistan has friendly diplomatic relations with Kazakhstan that need to be transformed into economic relations.

Senior Vice President Asim Malik, Vice President Talat Awan, former presidents, executive members and chamber members were also present on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, February 25th, 2022