Official stresses removal of hurdles in Pak-Uzbek trade

SCCI chief stresses need for evolving joint mechanism in this regard

PESHAWAR:

A joint mechanism should be evolved to remove hurdles present in the way of bilateral trade between Pakistan and Uzbekistan as well as other regional countries, said Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) President Sherbaz Bilour.

During a meeting with Uzbekistan Railways, Coal and Mineral Deputy Chairman Khayitboy A Omonov on Wednesday, he highlighted that the two countries possessed ample potential to enhance mutual trade and economic relations.

In this regard, he called for joint efforts to remove problems impeding bilateral trade between the two countries.

The SCCI chief urged Pakistan and Uzbekistan to initiate joint ventures, bilateral agreements and programmes to fully exploit the potential and opportunities.

He was of the view that taking advantage from each other’s experiences would be beneficial for strengthening the economies and trade of both the countries. The participants of the meeting agreed to exchange trade delegations, organise exhibitions and business- to-business meetings and benefit from each other’s experiences.

The Uzbek envoy said his country wanted to deepen bilateral trade and economic relations with Pakistan further.

“However, both countries should undertake serious measures in this regard,” he stressed. SCCI Senior Vice President Manzoor Elahi, Vice President Junaid Altaf and former president Faiz Muhammad Faizi identified the bottlenecks that were impeding trade relations between Pakistan, Uzbekistan and central Asian countries.

They underlined the importance of joint efforts and strategy to address all the hurdles. “Growth of bilateral trade volume between Pakistan and other regional countries is the need of the hour and it can also help improve the economy, reduce trade deficit and enhance exports,” they said. Earlier, SCCI office bearers pointed out impediments and problems in the way of bilateral trade and gave a number of proposals to address them amicably.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 26^th, 2020.

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