ISLAMABAD, Sept 10: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said on Monday Pakistan was eagerly waiting for the establishment of reconstruction of opportunities zones (ROZs) in the border areas with Afghanistan.The products manufactured in these zones will be exported duty free to the United States. The zones will be established following the passage of a law by the US Congress, which has been pending for the last few months.

The premier was talking to the newly-appointed Ambassador of Afghanistan to Pakistan, Muhammad Anwar Anwarzai, who called on him here at the Prime Minister’s House. Mr Aziz said that the establishment of such zones would help increase economic activities in the areas and would create new jobs and improve the standard of living of the people. He emphasised the need to promote regional trade to leverage the true potential of the region.Pakistan was playing a stabilising role in a region facing many challenges. It had been moving towards promoting mutually beneficial economic linkages across the region, he added. He called on the international community to do more to support Afghanistan through Marshall Plan-type assistance programme and helping to eradicate poppy cultivation through crop substitution and employment generation.—Our Reporter