LAHORE - Assuring the businessmen that law and order situation would soon improve, Chief Minister Punjab Mian Shahbaz Sharif has urged them to import state-of-the-art machines of industrial units being closed down around the world due to global recession.
He was speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Saturday where the LCCI handed over to him Rs 30 million cheque for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) of Swat.
LCCI President Mian Muzaffar Ali, LCCI Senior Vice President Tahir Javaid Malik, Vice President Irfan Iqbal Sheikh, Senator Ishaq Dar and Senior Political Assistant to Chief Minister Pervaiz Malik and MNA Hamaza Shahbaz Sharif also spoke on the occasion.
The Chief Minister said that difficulties are always accompanied with opportunities. He said that Pakistan has competitive advantage in many industrial sectors that could be exploited now by importing industrial units at much lower cost. He advised the businessmen to make investment in dairy farming and livestock as both the sectors have the potential to become biggest foreign exchange earner for Pakistan.
He acknowledged that dreaming of any foreign investment at this point in time when country is facing terror threats all around is impossible. He said that the local businessmen have should have the confidence that their government would overcome these difficulties and provide them with a conducive investment climate and it is essential for act now and take advantage of the lower machinery rates around the world. He said that he has visited China and Iran recently and found there are ample export opportunities for many items being produced in the province. He said that Iranian are willing to buy two lakh tons of meat from Pakistan.” We simply have to upgrade our slaughter houses to satisfy their quality demand. He said Iran last year imported kinnos worth $30 million that is produced in Punjab. He said we will have to improve our cold chain and packaging to further boost the exports.
Talking about lost opportunities, he regretted that despite inflow of billions of dollars, the past government failed to initiate Basha Dam project or develop the Ther Coal that could have resolved our power shortage problem.
Mian Shahbaz said that we have always looked towards the west and lost many opportunities while Iran that sanctioned by the US took technology from China and build a six lane underground Metro through indigenous engineering. Now they have offered both the technology and expertise to Punjab government to build similar underground Metro in Lahore. He urged the Punjab Businessmen to place their skill requirements with the vocational institutes of the Punjab government so that need-based training could be imparted with assured employment to the trainees.
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