Turkish commercial counsellor keen for joint ventures

LAHORE: Turkish Commercial Counsellor Farhat KAVAKLI said that Turkish businessmen were keen to start joint ventures with their Pakistani counterparts in the fields of printing, security systems, building materials, construction services, and textiles.

Addressing members of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) on Friday, he urged the Pakistani businessmen to come forward and avail the opportunity to the maximum. He said that both countries could have firsthand knowledge of the trade and investment opportunities through exchange of trade delegations on a regular basis.

KAVAKLI said Turkey and Pakistan have marvellous untapped business potential that needs to be realised by maximising the involvement of the private sectors of the two countries.

LCCI President Sheikh Muhammad Arshad spoke of the economic conditions and trade and investment opportunities available in Pakistan. He also gave various proposals to boost two-way trade.

“We together need to make efforts to reverse the present trend in bilateral trade. Pakistan’s exports are constantly dropping since 2011 when it reached its peak of $756 million that dropped to only $391 million last year,” he revealed.

In regards to solid-waste management, he said that waste-to-energy solutions were gaining a lot of success in the modern world. He said that Pakistan was facing severe crisis in the energy sector and the best way to move forward was to go far all available options in alternative energy.