Karachi: The Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs, Tuesday, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to promoting Pakistani entrepreneurship, local innovation and maritime tourism, while assuring full support of his ministry for the development of local cruise tourism in Pakistan.
The maritime minister, speaking at the inauguration ceremony of a locally manufactured cruise boat developed by Oceanic Cruise, appreciated the initiative as a significant example of Pakistani entrepreneurship and encouraged local businesses to come forward and contribute to development of the country’s maritime tourism sector.
The minister highlighted Pakistan’s growing potential in the international cruise sector, noting that licenses had recently been issued for cruise ships undertaking international travel. He encouraged local operators to obtain the requisite licenses and develop cruise services enabling Pakistanis to travel by sea to regional and international destinations.
Expressing his vision for the sector, the Minister
said that the Pakistani flag should reach the world through the cruise industry, adding that greater participation by local entrepreneurs would help develop a sustainable maritime tourism ecosystem in the country.
He emphasized the need to make maritime tourism accessible to a wider segment of society and urged the cruise operators to offer affordable packages for ordinary citizens, students and families, rather than limiting cruise tourism to affluent customers.
The Minister assured Oceanic Cruise management of his full cooperation and encouraged the company to formulate an expansion plan in consultation with KPT, including exploring operations from the recently developed KPT cruise terminal.
He said KPT would facilitate local entrepreneurs and support initiatives aimed at strengthening maritime tourism in Karachi and beyond.
Earlier, Board Chairman Oceanic Cruise Hadi Askari and CEO Yasir Hadi thanked the Minister, Chairman KPT, KPT Board members, senior officials and members of the media for attending
the ceremony and encouraging the initiative.
Hadi Askari appreciated the efforts of the present government in promoting local entrepreneurship and maritime tourism, saying that government support and an enabling business environment were essential for transforming innovative ideas into successful ventures in Pakistan.
Yasir Hadi highlighted that Oceanic Cruise has been operating in Karachi since 2017 and that the newly inaugurated vessel was entirely Made in Pakistan, having been built locally by Pakistani workers and entrepreneurs.
Earlier, the federal minister, accompanied by Chairman Karachi Port Trust Rear Admiral (Rtd) Shahid Ahmed, board members and senior officials of KPT and representatives of Oceanic Cruise, inaugurate the scaled up cruise.
