ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Commerce Khurram Dastgir Khan, members American Business Council (ABC) as well as the US ambassador Richard Olson will attend the said ceremony will hold launch the Soft inauguration of two-day conference titled Pak-US Business Opportunities today (Friday) in Karachi.
In this connection as splendor ceremony will be held in Karachi” a well placed source privy to Minister for Commerce told this scribe here on Thursday.
Through soft inauguration, media persons will be briefed about the objectives, goals and agenda and sequences of events of the conference. A list of possible participants of the conference will also be shared with the media in the soft inauguration.
The Pak-U.S Business Opportunity Conference is scheduled to be held here in the Federal Capital on March 10-11 and a large number of U.S businessmen representing agriculture, textiles, apparel, footwear, energy, surgical instruments, healthcare, pharmaceutical, infrastructure and ICT are likely to participate in the conference.
The conference is also aimed to present Pakistan to the international community as a reliable business and investment destination. The conference will cover areas like Textiles with focus on home textiles, agriculture with focus on finished food products, fruits, vegetables and rice, leather with focus on accessories, footwear, surgical instruments, information technology, energy and infrastructure.
At the ceremony of soft launch Minister for Commerce, Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan, Additional Secretary Commerce Robina Athar, Ambassador of United States to Pakistan Richard Olson and the President of the American Business Council (ABC) Arshad Saeed Husain will brief the members of the American Business Council and the media regarding the prospects of the Pak-US trade and Investment.
In his speech the Minister for Commerce would highlight MoC’s resolve to promote international trade which is must of Pakistan ’s economic development and poverty reduction strategies. This is the centerpiece of the current government’s vision and strategy to fight violent extremism through economic and political empowerment of the people of Pakistan.
Minister will further share Pakistan and the US an important economic and strategic relationship. Government of Pakistan, therefore, places a high priority on bolstering economic engagement with the U.S.
Both governments acknowledge the fact that closer economic ties and expanded trade and investment opportunities would lend greater strength and sustainability to this strategic relationship and help towards realization of shared objectives including promotion of enduring stability in the region.
In his welcome address the President of ABC Arshad Saeed Husain likely to observe that The American Business Council of Pakistan is extremely pleased to partner with the Ministry of Commerce and the US Department of State for the 3rd edition of the upcoming Business Opportunities Conference.
ABC members represent American investment in Pakistan and they are committed to making this conference a success by showcasing their success stories and sharing their experiences with potential trader partners and investors. United States of America (USA) is the largest single country export destination for Pakistan’s trade. Every year, around 15-20% of Pakistan’s total exports enter US market.
During 2013, Pakistan ’s total exports to USA were US$ 3.687 billion, which is about 16% of the total exports of Pakistan to the world. US also remains a very important source of FDI and major areas of investment by American investors include energy, agriculture, IT and infrastructure.
Although the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) has not fixed any targets with the conference, yet the Minister for Commerce will not only attend the ceremony but deliver a fantastic speech to highlight MoC’s efforts to attract foreign investments as well as to accelerate the volume of trade with special focus on enhancing the volume of exports.
The conference is also aimed to present Pakistan to the international community as a reliable business and investment destination. The conference will cover areas like Textiles with focus on home textiles, agriculture with focus on finished food products, fruits, vegetables and rice, leather with focus on accessories, footwear, surgical instruments, information technology, energy and infrastructure.
The participants will also analyze the chances to materialize the proposal of the establishment of a” US-Pakistan Joint Business Forum”. Over 100 American companies and entrepreneurs have been invited to the conference and MoC expects maximum number of participants in the conference along with representatives from U.S.-Pakistan Business Council (USPBC) and U.S companies with an interest in Pakistan so that they may be able to get more involved in shaping policy priorities and outcomes.
The focus of both the Pakistani and American representatives in the conference is likely to be on energy sector in the country, because thrust of MoC, Board of Investment (BoI) and other concerned departments and ministries had been on the power and energy shortage.