KCCI, Greater Birmingham Chamber Inks MoU To Foster Cooperation, Bilateral Trade

Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) and Greater Birmingham Chamber of Commerce (GBCC), on Wednesday, entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to foster coordination and bilateral trade between Pakistan and the United Kingdom

KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 28th Feb, 2024) Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) and Greater Birmingham Chamber of Commerce (GBCC), on Wednesday, entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to foster coordination and bilateral trade between Pakistan and the United Kingdom.

President KCCI Iftikhar Ahmed Sheikh and President (GBCC) Nasir Awan signed the (MoU on the occasion of a visit of the UK-Pakistan Inward Trade Mission to KCCI, said a statement issued here.

According to the MoU both the chambers will support each other and undertake initiatives for enhancing trade and investment cooperation between the two countries.

Leader of UK-Pakistan Inward Trade Mission Dr. Michelle Kristy, President Greater Birmingham Global Chamber of Commerce Mark Smith, Director Asian Business Chamber of Commerce UK Anjum Khan, President Bradford Chamber of Commerce James Mason, Chairman Businessmen Group Zubair Motiwala, other members of UK-Pakistan Inward Trade Mission along with former and present office bearers of KCCI attended the meeting.

Dr. Michelle Kristy, speaking at the occasion, advised the Pakistani business community to take advantage of the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) introduced by the United Kingdom. DCTS could enable more trade flow between the UK and Pakistan and it was “a very good time to explore the benefits of exporting to UK or vice versa,” she added.

The inward trade mission, in addition to various UK-based companies, also comprises Presidents and representatives of Chambers of Commerce in the UK who were all here in Karachi to strengthen bilateral trade relations between the UK and Pakistan which will be followed by visits to Lahore and Sialkot, she informed.

International Trade Center has launched an export handbook comprising necessary information about the UK market and details of DCTS for guiding Pakistani companies on the process of export to the UK, she said and requested KCCI to upload the handbook on KCCI’s website which would be beneficial for many Pakistani businesses.

She hoped that the UK-Pakistan Inward Trade Mission’s visit to KCCI would prove to be a good beginning and that more such efforts in collaboration with the UK Government would also made in future for the benefit of Pakistani companies.

Zubair Motiwala, in his remarks, stated that Pakistan and the UK have been enjoying cordial relations since the inception of Pakistan. He hoped that the visit of the UK-Pakistan Inward Trade Mission would help improve trade and understanding between the two friendly countries.

Referring to enormous resources and business opportunities available in Pakistan and activities undertaken by the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), he said that Pakistan was inviting investors to invest in the agriculture sector wherein huge fertile land of 26 million hectares was still available.

He thought that the UK and Pakistani diaspora in the UK could help Pakistan by importing more and coming into action by undertaking joint ventures in Pakistan, particularly in the value addition and technology transfer in agriculture, textile and many other sectors.

Iftikhar Ahmed Sheikh said that Karachi was home to a multitude of industries, including textiles, pharmaceuticals, software development, and more. “Our business environment is conducive to growth, with a skilled workforce and a supportive government committed to creating a business-friendly ecosystem,” he stated.