ADB Conference Highlights Regional Integration In Digital Era For Leveraging Trade For Climate, Health Solutions

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Friday convened industry leaders and government officials at a pivotal conference focused on enhancing regional integration through digital trade, with an emphasis on addressing climate and health challenges

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 1st Nov, 2024) The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Friday convened industry leaders and government officials at a pivotal conference focused on enhancing regional integration through digital trade, with an emphasis on addressing climate and health challenges.

The two-day conference has been organized by the ADB in collaboration with the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) here at a hotel, said a press release.

The first day of the conference hosted Minister of State for Information Technology and Telecommunication, Shazia Fatima Khawaja who highlighted significant growth of 25% in tech exports and government endeavours of providing financing to the youth to scale E-entrepreneurship initiatives and youth led startups.

The notable speakers at the second day inaugural session included Lyaziza Sabyrova, Regional Head, CWRD, ADB, Syed Aftab Haider, CEO of Pakistan Single Window (PSW), and Wahat Bastimiyev, CEO of Verigram.

In her opening remarks, Lyaziza Sabyrova, Regional Head, CWRD, ADB briefed the participants on CAREC program which was stated almost two decades with them vision to integration, reformation and transition in the central Asian countries' economies.

The program, she said helped in human development including education and health with broader focus on digitalization, gender and climate change.

Sayed Ashraf Siddiqui, Joint Secretary, Economic Affairs Division and CAREC National Focal Point in Pakistan said the role of technology is important to promote and enhance regional trade whereas the conference also intends to foster digital trade across the region.

It is also the foundation step of the implementation on the digital strategy 2030 that emphasizes upon the technology in promoting regional trade through reducing barriers and enhancing connectivity across various sectors, he said.

During the conference, Syed Aftab Haider emphasized the transformative power of technology in global trade. He noted the significant growth of merchandise trade and the surging e-commerce landscape. "Digitalization is the way forward, encompassing both technology and procedures. Pakistan Single Window has implemented a digital platform across all land, air, and dry ports, significantly reducing the bureaucratic footprint," he said.

Verigram’s Wahat Bastimiyev shared insights on Kazakhstan’s digital landscape, highlighting a remarkable increase in non-cash transactions and the swift opening of bank accounts. "With internet penetration at 92% and cashless payments making up 89% of transactions, Kazakhstan is witnessing a banking transformation that can enhance cross-border e-payments," he noted.

The panel discussion featured prominent figures including Dr. Manzoor Ahmad, former ambassador, and permanent representative of Pakistan's Mission to World Trade Organization (WTO) who advocated for Pakistan's participation in modern trade agreements that prioritize gender and climate change.

He pointed out that Pakistan collects only 50% of taxes from its international trade, a stark contrast to the global average of less than 5%.

Mohammad Shoaib Zafar, National Advisor, International Trade Centre (ITC) called for a cultural shift within the prevailing trade system, emphasizing the need for capacity building among consumers and traders. Engineer Ahad Nazir highlighted the importance of initiatives like PSW, urging for their expansion and integration with other government systems to enhance data governance and cybersecurity.

Dr. Usman Qadir, Senior Research Economist, PIDE underscored the need for the government to promote PSW and improve data accuracy for effective policymaking, stating that Pakistan must accelerate its technological advancements in the trade sector.

The panel discussion concluded with a call to action for policymakers to adopt a holistic approach to trade, prioritizing technological integration and collaboration across sectors to foster sustainable growth in the digital era.

The second panel discussion moderated by Syed Ali Wasif Naqvi, Head Center for Health and Policy Innovation, SDPI hosted Dr Shahzad Ali Khan, Vice Chancellor Health Services Academy and Dr Minhaj ur Siraj, Former Joint Executive Director, PIMS.

Dr Shahzad Ali Khan said the digital transformation has transformed the previously interpersonal systems making them more liberal and progressive like emergence of telehealth medicine, AI algorithms based hospital management system and others.

The progress and growth of digital health is very slow even in the developed countries.

The community based health services through digital platforms is totally a different scenario.

The psyche of patients and physical interaction is critical for treating humans which is a challenge and the digital applications should be devised after consultations with doctors and patients while understanding their psyches, he added.

Pakistan will be the leader and biggest beneficiaries of one health roll out in CAREC countries due to it's well trained health human resource of trade and connectivity improves between the countries, he said.

The same digital health platforms can be used for addressing other disease spread as the biggest research in future will be on infectious disease control digital health platforms that can provide disease spread details in less time, he added.

Transparency and governance systems need to be improved to embrace digital transformation which promotes accountability and fairness, he said.