LCCI President calls for Greek expertise, technology to develop Pakistan’s agriculture, minerals sectors
DNA
LAHORE, Sep 4: Greece and Pakistan have significant potential to further expand bilateral trade and economic cooperation, particularly through greater business-to-business engagement, tourism, skilled manpower, agriculture, renewable energy and other emerging sectors, Ambassador of Greece to Pakistan Eleni Porichi said during a one-to-one meeting with President of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry Faheem Ur Rehman Saigol at the LCCI, where the two sides discussed ways to strengthen economic and commercial relations between Greece and Pakistan.
The Greek Ambassador said that bilateral trade between the two countries could improve further and stressed that the business communities of both countries should identify areas where meaningful cooperation could be developed. She said that diplomatic missions could facilitate trade delegations, business exchanges and contacts, but the initiative should also come from businesses themselves to identify concrete opportunities.
LCCI President Faheem Ur Rehman Saigol said that Pakistan and Greece should work together to explore opportunities in agriculture, mining and minerals, while Pakistani businesses should benefit from Greek expertise, technology and experience in various sectors. He particularly emphasized the need to enhance cooperation in tourism, saying that Greece had developed world-class tourism expertise and Pakistan could benefit from its experience.
The LCCI President proposed that business delegations and structured B2B meetings should be promoted to provide businessmen of both countries with direct opportunities to identify joint ventures, investment opportunities and trade avenues. He said that the Lahore Chamber was working actively to promote business activity and international economic linkages and would extend all possible cooperation in this regard.
Ambassador Eleni Porichi said that textiles remained an important area of trade between Greece and Pakistan, with cotton and textile products constituting a major part of bilateral trade, but there were opportunities to diversify cooperation into other fields, including tourism and renewable energy.
She highlighted the strong presence of the Pakistani community in Greece, noting that a large number of Pakistanis living and working there belonged to Punjab. She said Greek employers had substantial and recurring demand for Pakistani workers in different sectors, particularly agriculture, while opportunities were also emerging for electricians, engineers and workers in other skilled professions. The Ambassador said that Pakistani workers were being employed in Greece on both seasonal and long-term arrangements, depending on employers’ requirements, and that thousands of Pakistani workers came to Greece each year. Discussing tourism and cultural cooperation, she appreciated the development and restoration work being carried out in Lahore and said that she had witnessed a significant transformation in downtown Lahore compared with her previous visit to Pakistan around 2010. She also expressed interest in exploring further cooperation in tourism and culture. The Ambassador said Greece could offer considerable expertise in tourism infrastructure and suggested that contacts between relevant stakeholders could be developed to explore mutually beneficial opportunities.
