South Asia Has Tremendous Trade Potential: Ruwan

Ruwan Edirisinghe, President SAARC ChamberSaturday said South Asia has tremendous trade potential, which needs to betapped for greater economic integration by fully exploiting all indigenousnatural resources to make the region an abode of peace, progress andprosperity.

ISLAMABAD APRIL 20 ( ONLINE) : Ruwan Edirisinghe (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point news - 20th April, 2019) Ruwan Edirisinghe, President SAARC ChamberSaturday said South Asia has tremendous trade potential, which needs to betapped for greater economic integration by fully exploiting all indigenousnatural resources to make the region an abode of peace, progress andprosperity.He expressed these views during a meeting with a delegation of prominenttrade leaders led by SAARC CCI Senior Vice President Iftikhar Ali Malikheld here today.Ruwan Edirisinghe stressed that core trade issues should be addressed andPakistan's role in that regard would be vital as prosperity was notpossible without restoring peace in the region.He said that since its inception, the SAARC Chamber has facilitatedregional cooperation in various areas for the welfare of people of SouthAsia.

The SAARC should be more active to address major challenges theregion faces, job creation for the youth of South Asia - our region'sbiggest asset - and alleviation of poverty, he added.

"The SAARC CCI has taken initiatives to reinforce a common South Asianidentity given the region's close historical, cultural and geographicalties and the mutual aspiration and desire of all member states to promotethe social and economic welfare of people.The SAARC Chamber has been proactively advocating stronger commercial andeconomic relations for a prosperous and integrated South Asia.

Since itsinception, SAARC CCI has played an integral role in providing aninstitutional framework for promoting economic and regional cooperation inSouth Asia, he added.Ruwan Edirisinghe remarked that initiatives may be taken to utilize thepotential of cooperation in the areas of tourism and energy of the region.He said that with a view to ensuring trade facilitation in the region theproblems regarding SAARC visa sticker, removal of trade barriers includingNTMs, acceptance of standard certificate, limitations of infrastructure inthe land ports, etc should be removed.