Faisalabad, Qingdao Cooperation To Turn Both Cities To Industrial Hub: FCCI Chief

Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FCCI) President Atif Munir Sheikh Tuesday said that cooperation between Faisalabad and Chinese city Qingdao could transform both cities as regional hub of industrial, commercial, educational and research activities

FAISALABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 9th Nov, 2021 ) :Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FCCI) President Atif Munir Sheikh Tuesday said that cooperation between Faisalabad and Chinese city Qingdao could transform both cities as regional hub of industrial, commercial, educational and research activities.

He was addressing a zoom conference, arranged by the Pak-China Centre in connection with declaring Faisalabad and Qingdao as 'sister cities' to mark the 70th anniversary of the Communist party of China. He said that Faisalabad had emerged as the fastest growing city of Pakistan, which was playing a major role in overall economy of Pakistan.

About the FCCI, he said that it was the elected forum of the business community of Faisalabad which had 8,000 members. He said that Faisalabad was strategically located in the heart of Pakistan, which was well connected through road, rail and air links. "Faisalabad has two mega industrial estates where many foreign companies, including Chinese firms, have already established their units which are working profitably," he said.

The FCCI president said investors had been given special incentives including a 10-year tax holiday, which had made it most lucrative for foreign investors. He said Pakistan was importing raw material from China and now investors from Qingdao should also exploit the potential by establishing units to fulfil the needs of local industrial sector. He said that surplus production could also be exported to the middle East and other counties. He quoted his recent meeting with Chief Minister Punjab Usman Buzdar and said that he had himself inaugurated a Foreign Investment Facilitation Desk for the convenience of new investors.

"Similarly, an inspector-less regime has also been introduced to save them from unnecessary hassle," he added.

Former FCCI president Rizwan Ashraf said that Faisalabad alone was contributing $8 billion through the export of textile products in addition to fulfilling the 80pc needs of the domestic cloth market. He said that Faisalabad had a sufficient quantity of skilled human resources.

Former president Shabbir Hussain Chawla said that Pakistan was importing huge quantities of dyes and chemicals from China which could be produced in Faisalabad by launching joint ventures with Chinese investors.

Earlier Chinese officials briefed the participants about the objectives of declaring Faisalabad and Qingdao as sister cities.

During the question answer session, Engineer Rizwan Ashraf said that the FCCI and Pak-China Centre should nominate their focal persons to carry out the follow-up of the meeting. He stressed the need for technology transfer in addition to exchange of students and faculty members. He said that Chinese universities could also establish their satellite campuses in Faisalabad.

Heinz of Pak-China Centre requested the FCCI members to provide their products and catalogue for display in the Qingdao International Investment Centre. The both sides agreed in principle to nominate their focal persons and share their email addresses for future correspondence.