LAHORE: Pakistan is fast attaining the status of Business Opportunity Zone for potential foreign investors because it is not only the energy sector where investments would earn rich dividends but huge untapped mineral resources of trillion of dollars worth are a great attraction for foreign businessmen.
This was stated by LCCI President Irfan Qaiser Sheikh while talking to Canadian Asia Division Analyst Christopher Martin, First Secretary Canadian High Commission John Gosal and Director Asia Division Elyas Irfani on Saturday.
The LCCI president informed the visiting delegation that the agriculture sector also offers a huge potential particularly any investment made in livestock and dairy sectors is bound to make big gains.
He said that economic indicators were fast turning positive, law and order situation is also becoming satisfactory while investment climate is picking up with every passing day.
“The availability of cheaper skilled and unskilled labour, low priced land as compared to other regional countries and an infrastructure of international standards would definitelycreate a win-win scenario for global investors,” he added.
Irfan urged the Canadian officials to send a business delegation to Pakistan so that it could have first hand knowledge about the available opportunities here as the Lahore Chamber of Commerce is planning a sector-specific delegation to Canada in coming months.
Talking about MFN to India, the LCCI president said that Pakistan and India have much more to gain from improved bilateral trade. But the caveat is that the trade between the two countries is hassle-free, barrier-less and removed from historical baggage.
Pakistan government would have to address the concerns of the local manufacturers as a number of sectors including pharmaceutical, automobile, motorcycle, petrochemical, auto parts, sugar, textile, cooking oil and ghee industries have genuine reservations.
He said at present, the official trade between the two countries is far below the true potential. Most of the Pakistan-India trade takes place via third countries, like Dubai.
Transportation and communication links are far from being efficient.
Pakistan and India together form the most populous and contiguous consumer market of world. Over 1.4 billion people or around 86 per cent of South Asian population lives in these two countries. Two economies represent almost 95 per cent of the South Asian GDP.
Over the gas shortage, the LCCI president said that the completion of Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project and the establishment of LNG terminals in Karachi in another two to three years down the line would be a good breakthrough.