LAHORE:Borhene El Kamal, ambassador of Tunisia, and the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) leadership Wednesday agreed to strengthen efforts to enhance bilateral trade relations in the larger interest of the two countries.
The ambassador visited the APTMA Northern Zone office where he was welcomed by Kamran Arshad, senior vice chairman, Asad Shafi, vice chairman, Raza Baqir, secretary general, and other senior members of the Association. Former central chairman APTMA Abdul Rahim Nasir, along with other senior members, was also present.
The visiting envoy said the online negotiations on a Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) had started three years ago and authorities of both the countries are in contact with each other to finalising the agreement. He hoped for breakthroughs after signing of the PTA, which would lead to upsurge in bilateral trade.
According to him, a Tunisian business delegation was also planning to visit Pakistan to look for the business opportunities in the coming months. It would visit APTMA and other trade associations, he added.
Senior Vice Chairman APTMA Kamran Arshad appreciated the role of the Tunisian embassy in pursuing PTA with Pakistan. He assured him of persuading the Commerce Ministry of Pakistan by APTMA to expedite the process.
He said the APTMA would welcome the delegation in the coming months to negotiate joint ventures (JVs) between the two countries. Both the countries might have JVs in areas like man-made fibres, denim, twill, drill, shirting materials and other technical textiles, he added.
Earlier, he highlighted the significance of cooperation, collaboration, and JVs of the industrial sectors of the two countries. He said an early signing of the PTA between the two countries would be beneficial to the textile sectors of the two countries. Also, he suggested signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between APTMA and the Embassy of Tunisia.
Vice Chairman APTMA Asad Shafi said Pakistan’s exports to Tunisia stood at $24.5 million with 31 per cent component of cotton and imports were at $2.4 million in 2021. He said there was a strong potential for expansion in bilateral trade between the two counties, in particular, in the fields of textile, food, and chemicals.
According to him, the emerging status of Tunisia in the African countries and the geostrategic location of Pakistan could be beneficial to each other.
He also extended a vote of thanks to the visiting envoy at the end of the meeting.