HYDERABAD, Sept 22: District Nazim Kanwar Naveed Jamil has said that Hyderabad has a good potential for foreign investment in industrial and agriculture sectors.

Speaking at a meeting with French Ambassador to Pakistan Regis De Belenet here on Thursday, he said that Hyderabad was the second largest city of Sindh and it was rapidly expanding due to industrial potential and population influx.

French consul general in Karachi, Mr Pierre Seillan, District naib nazim Zafar Rajput, MPA Aslam Pervez, DCO Mohammad Hussain Syed and vice-chairman of the Hyderabad SITE Association of Trade and Industry, Mohammad Shoaib, were present on the occasion.

The nazim said that keeping in view the future requirements of ever-increasing population, the district government had prepared a master plan upto 2025.

He said that the master plan of development was being implemented and different mega projects pertaining to drainage and communication had been initiated.

He said that after the completion of projects, the situation of the city would be much better in all respects.

He said that under the master plan drainage and communication was being given a priority and the district government had also planned to set up a five-star hotel in the city.

The nazim invited the ambassador to set up a French Arts Centre and French language learning centre in Hyderabad.

He informed French diplomats that the district fell in low-rain zone with 2-inch rainfall per annum but unfortunately this year it received heavy rainfall against all expectations.

He said that the situation was beyond the capacity of departments concerned but we successfully faced it with courage and upto 99 per cent rainwater had been drained out and now the situation was fully under control.

The nazim said that though preservation of historical places and monuments was the job of federal government but the district government had evolved a joint mechanism and earmarked Rs30 million for preservation of historical places and monuments.

The ambassador said that many French companies were investing in Pakistan in different sectors.

He said that they were also interested in hotel industry but due to high-land rates in big cities of Pakistan they were facing problems.

He said that France was providing higher education to Pakistani students and there was considerable number of students studying in France.

He evinced keen interest in historical, cultural, social and trading activities of the district.