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  • Dec 6th, 2005
  • Comments Off on President calls for bolstering trade among OIC states
President General Pervez Musharraf on Monday issued a ringing call for a co-ordinated approach to bolster trade among OIC member states as a way forward for their overall economic development.

Speaking to Yemeni business leaders ahead of this week's extraordinary summit of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) to be held at Makkah, the President hoped that a revamped OIC would set up a dedicated department for promoting intra-OIC trade.

"The current level of commerce within the Muslim countries hovers around just 10-12 percent - we need to step it up and complement each other's economies for sustainable development of our peoples", stressed the President on the second day of his visit to the Arab country.

He referred to the need to assess the scope of bilateral trade between Muslim countries through identification of various potential fields, saying if there is "mutuality of consideration" the Muslim countries could raise their trade to 30 percent of their total international commerce.

In this context, he quoted the level of trade between Pakistan and Yemen and said the Arab country imports goods worth $1.5 billion from around the world while Pakistan exports the same goods to the world to the tune of $11 billion. But Yemen's total imports from Pakistan are just $50 million.

Musharraf, who has been spearheading efforts for reform of the OIC, expressed the hope that the restructured OIC would address the issue of promoting trade within Muslim countries through a separate department.

The President highlighted the role of business communities in promoting bilateral trade between Muslim countries, saying that governments can devise encouraging policies but it is the private sector, which imparts momentum to commerce relations.

Musharraf underscored that political bonds between countries get strengthened through upsurge in trade and economic co-operation and said Pakistan and Yemen have a great scope for improving their commerce level.

In this respect, he said a joint ministerial meeting should follow up with efforts to explore ways and sort out any shipping problems in the way of this objective.

He said joint ventures between Pakistan and Yemen can be profitable as Pakistan has a rapidly growing economy.

The President also proposed that the two countries should hold trade exhibitions to find out areas of common interest. He also listed advantages of investment in Pakistan.

An investor-friendly climate offers a level-playing field for local and foreign entrepreneurs in Pakistan, he said.

"The gap between demand and supply due to high economic growth and enhanced purchasing power of people has opened up new opportunities for business in a number of fields", he said, adding that Pakistan is centrally located to serve as a hub of trade among Central Asia, South Asia, the Gulf region and Western parts of China.

Federal Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad, Minister of State for Petroleum, Muhammad Naseer Mengal, Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) Chairman Tariq Ikram and senior aides attended the meeting.

ROUSING WELCOME ACCORDED: The residents of the ancient city of Sana'a accorded a rousing reception to President Pervez Musharraf on Monday as he visited one of the oldest cradles of Arab civilisation.

The people, young and old, lined up on the roadsides, cheered and clapped as the visiting Pakistani leader crossed the Bab-e-Yemen to enter the ancient part of the city.

Mayor of Sana'a Ahmad Al Kohlani warmly greeted the President and garlanded him upon arrival.

The President waved back to the cheering crowd as he stepped upon an elevated point for view of the city, which is said to be dated as far back as to the era of son of Prophet Hazrat Noah (AS).

The Mayor presented key of the city to the President and briefed him about the city's history in front of clay coloured houses of the valley known as Wadi-e-Dahr.

PAKISTANI COMMUNITY: Later, addressing a gathering of Sana'a-based Pakistani community. President Musharraf described his meetings with the Yemeni leadership as fruitful, saying these will set the pace for fostering strong bilateral relationship.

"Both sides are willing to take the bilateral ties to higher level, and we have decided to explore a number of areas to intensify and expand our bilateral co-operation," he said.

Musharraf referred to his meetings with President Ali Abdullah Saleh, Yemeni Prime Minister and cabinet members and expressed the confidence that these would lead to better ties in political, energy, trade and cultural areas.

Pakistan, he said, would be willing to extend co-operation to Yemen in the agricultural field and provide expertise in increasing its agrarian output.

Musharraf is the first Pakistani leader to undertake a bilateral visit to Yemen in the last 15 years.

Informing the Pakistani expatriates about the government's plans of reconstruction and rehabilitation in the quake-affected areas, the President said Pakistan was following a transparent strategy in this regard.

"Relief assistance is definitely reaching down to the survivors and the government will provide finances and guidance to the affected people to rebuild their houses on modern lines," he said.

Musharraf said a precise database about requirement for educational and health infrastructure from district to village-level would be put on the web site this month.

"We are not aiming at revival of old infrastructure but will go for much better, elaborate and well-equipped health and education facilities in the quake zone," he said.

Pakistan, he said, will account for all donations that would be spent on transforming the challenging situation into an opportunity for improvement in the lives of survivors,

On countering terrorism, the President said Pakistan was pursuing a holistic strategy, addressing the menace both in short and long-term perspectives.

At the same, Musharraf said, he has been asking the Western capitals to help resolve lingering political disputes to stamp out terrorism in interest of sustainable world peace.

"Our economic development and poverty alleviation will also help address extremism and terrorism," he said.

Musharraf informed the Pakistanis that the country is on the rise, having achieved a remarkable economic turnaround.

"So have firm belief in your country's ability to progress and prosper, have self-confidence and patriotic zeal - Pakistan will emerge as a vibrant and progressive nation on the map of the world," he said.

Information Minister Sheikh Rashid, Minister of State for Petroleum, Chairman Export Promotion Bureau and senior officials were also present on the occasion.

Copyright Associated Press of Pakistan, 2005


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