Business ties in crosshairs: UK minister Alistair Burt visits Karachi
British medical company partners with the health ministry for project.
KARACHI:
British Minister for South Asia at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Alistair Burt arrived in Karachi on Wednesday with the focus on business and trade development.
Burt witnessed the beginning of a new partnership between Mobicare, a British medical company and the Sindh Ministry of Health which will help improve people’s access to health services and create hundreds of new jobs.
“When the prime minister, David Cameron, visited Pakistan last month he made a commitment to increase the trade of goods and services between our two countries to £2.5 billion by 2015,” said Burt. “This is the reason why I have devoted half of my time on this visit to a business-focused programme in Karachi,” he further said.
He said that his visit has showed him the successes that UK companies in Pakistan are experiencing and the wide range of opportunities in the market. The 100 or so British companies already operating in Pakistan are testament to this, he added.
Burt also met the Sindh Governor Ishratul Ebad Khan and reinforced the United Kingdom’s commitment to Pakistan, according to the release.
Burt, visiting the GlaxoSmithKline’s head office, was impressed by the advanced technology being used by the country’s largest pharmaceutical company for its operation. “This is another great example of how a British company is providing opportunities and boosting the economy for the people of Pakistan, which is essential for a better future.” GlaxoSmithKline earlier this week announced plans of investing Rs2 billion in the next couple of years for developing healthcare products in the country.
He also met the British business community and young entrepreneurs during the day.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 19th, 2011.
British Minister for South Asia at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Alistair Burt arrived in Karachi on Wednesday with the focus on business and trade development.
Burt witnessed the beginning of a new partnership between Mobicare, a British medical company and the Sindh Ministry of Health which will help improve people’s access to health services and create hundreds of new jobs.
“When the prime minister, David Cameron, visited Pakistan last month he made a commitment to increase the trade of goods and services between our two countries to £2.5 billion by 2015,” said Burt. “This is the reason why I have devoted half of my time on this visit to a business-focused programme in Karachi,” he further said.
He said that his visit has showed him the successes that UK companies in Pakistan are experiencing and the wide range of opportunities in the market. The 100 or so British companies already operating in Pakistan are testament to this, he added.
Burt also met the Sindh Governor Ishratul Ebad Khan and reinforced the United Kingdom’s commitment to Pakistan, according to the release.
Burt, visiting the GlaxoSmithKline’s head office, was impressed by the advanced technology being used by the country’s largest pharmaceutical company for its operation. “This is another great example of how a British company is providing opportunities and boosting the economy for the people of Pakistan, which is essential for a better future.” GlaxoSmithKline earlier this week announced plans of investing Rs2 billion in the next couple of years for developing healthcare products in the country.
He also met the British business community and young entrepreneurs during the day.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 19th, 2011.