LAHORE: A 100-member Chinese delegation has attended Pakistan-China Business Opportunities Conference, jointly organised by the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) and Punjab Board of Investment & Trader (PBIT).
Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif was the chief guest on the occasion, while LCCI President Sheikh Muhammad Arshad, Senior Vice President Almas Hyder, Vice President Nasir Saeed, Consul General of China in Lahore Yu Boren, Pak-China Friendship Association Chairman Sha Zukang, Provincial Minister Ayesha Ghous Pasha, PBIT Chairman Abdul Basit, former LCCI presidents, senior vice presidents, vice presidents and executive committee members were also present in the conference.
Speaking at the occasion, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said that China is the most reliable friend, has always stood with Pakistan and helped it in all respects. He said that China is a very important partner in Pakistan economic development and bilateral trade. “The involvement of Chinese enterprises both in term of technical and financial assistance in several development projects is reflective of our cordial relations based on mutual trust and sincerity,” he added.
Sharif termed the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor as an energy and infrastructure program with the investment of $46b in Pakistan. He said that $ 46 billion is the biggest investment ever made by China in any foreign country. This program, he said, when completed would help end power outages in the country, and ensure seamless connectivity between China, South and Central Asia. He said that investment climate is getting better with every passing day due to best policies of Punjab government and all possible facilities are being provided to foreign investors.
LCCI President Sheikh Muhammad Arshad said that both the countries not only share border but also have unanimity of views on various political & economic issues. He said that two countries have a combined market of more than 1.5 billion people but the trade volume needs to be pushed up. He said that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Project will change the destiny of Pakistan. He said that most of raw material is being import for the projects under CPEC.
He suggested that Pakistani material approved from Pakistan Engineering Council should be used for CPEC projects. He said that Chinese technological advancement could help Pakistan overcome economic challenges in a short span of time. He also announced to set a “China Desk” at the LCCI to provide necessary information to the investors.
LCCI Senior Vice President Almas Hyder said that Chinese investment in energy projects will certainly solve the issue of energy shortage in Pakistan. He invited the Chinese businessmen to enhance their investment in priority sectors including Oil and Gas, Mining, Infrastructure, Power and IT & Telecom etc. He said that though trade has been increased from $ 9.3 billion in 2013 to $ 11.8 billion in 2014 but still there is a lot of room for enhancement of trade and economic ties.
Chinese Consul General Yu Boren said that both Pakistan and China had huge potential to increase the bilateral trade as the existing volume of two-way trade between the two countries is very small when it is compared with the total Chinese business. He said that incentive package and China-Pak Economic Corridor is enough to make the point that China gives top priority to Pakistan in terms of business and trade.
Chairman Pak-China Friendship Association Sha Zukang spoke highly about Pakistan and said that CPEC would further cement trade and economic ties between the two countries. He said that China-Pakistan relations had become an example of state to state relations.