LAHORE, Nov 11: Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi said on Friday the Sheikh Zayed Trade Centre of Lahore would be completed at a cost of Rs20 billion, and it would be the tallest shockproof building in the country.

He hoped the centre being built on Ferozepur Road would play an important role in providing job opportunities to scores of people and promoting economic progress in the province.

Presiding over a meeting, the chief minister said the trade centre design was approved by the Dhabi Group of the UAE and the Punjab government.

The meeting was also attended by chief secretary Salman Siddique, Dhabi Group chief executive Bashir Tahir and Pervaiz A. Shahid, the head of the company formed by the group and the provincial government.

The chief minister said the centre was a joint venture of the Dhabi Group and the Punjab government which would provide job opportunities to over 20,000 people. He hoped the project would prove to be an excellent example of trade and economic cooperation between the UAE and Pakistan.

He said the 55-storey centre would house a five-star hotel, luxury apartments, a shopping mall and parking basements to accommodate as many as 4,000 vehicles. A banquet hall, with a capacity of 5,000 people, would also be constructed.

In addition to this, he said, the provision of quality recreational facilities for the people would also be ensured in the centre. The project would play an important role in the availability of local and foreign products, the provision of employment opportunities and the uplift of the living standards of the masses.

The chief minister said a foreign company known for building skyscrapers would complete the project.

NAZIMS: Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi and all district and tehsil nazims are meeting President Pervez Musharraf in Islamabad on Saturday.

This will be the first meeting of the president with the recently elected district and tehsil nazims.

The chief minister will be accompanied by the chief secretary and the local government secretary.