Kosovo Ambassador Visits FPCCI Regional Office

Ambassador of Republic of Kosovo to Pakistan Dr Beqir Ismaili visited the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) Regional office, here on Monday

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2023 ):Ambassador of Republic of Kosovo to Pakistan Dr Beqir Ismaili visited the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) Regional office, here on Monday.

He discussed with FPCCI President Irfan Iqbal Sheikh and Regional Chairman Muhammad Nadeem Qureshi measures for enhancing cooperation in diverse fields such as tourism, trade, investment, technology, and exchange of business delegations.

Melhan Memuti, first secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) Kosovo, and Zahid Anjum, honorary consul, Republic of Kosovo, were also present.

The ambassador appreciated Pakistan's support in their struggle for independence. He said that Kosovo wanted to strengthen its trade and economic relations with Pakistan as both countries have good potential to trade in many areas. Pakistani investors might use Kosove as a hub to promote their exports to European markets.

Dr. Beqir Ismaili said that Kosovo was interested in developing sector-specific relations with Pakistan to make some tangible progress and later those ties could be diversified to cover more areas of cooperation.

He was of the view that regular interaction between the private sectors of the two sides with follow-up meetings should be the way forward to further strengthen bilateral trade and economic ties between Kosovo and Pakistan.

Irfan Iqbal Sheikh said that presently, there were no significant trade agreements between Pakistan and Kosovo along with a negligible trade volume, however, both countries had expressed their willingness towards increasing their trade and economic cooperation. A major hurdle in enhancing bilateral trade between the two countries would be the lack of direct air links as well as shipping routes, he added.

Muhammad Nadeem Qureshi said that two sides could mutually benefit from starting Joint Ventures in the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in Pakistan under the CPEC (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor) project. Pakistan is the world's leading player in the apparel industry, cereals, fruits & vegetables, salts, spices, honey, cutlery, surgical instruments, sports goods, and the leather and footwear market, Nadeem added.

He said that business associations & communities need to come closer through dialogue and a MOU would be the first step in unlocking trade and investment potential between the two countries.

He suggested, "We organize trade and investment seminars and conferences that can highlight areas of bilateral cooperation and uncover the existing challenges the business community is facing in both countries."