Turkish envoy calls for more trade and investment with Pakistan, offers access to EU market

KARACHI: Turkey's consul general on Saturday urged Pakistani and Turkish businesses to work harder to boost the current low volume of bilateral trade, which he said was far below its potential despite strong cultural and historical ties.

Cemal Sangu, who spoke at a meeting of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI), said the two countries had a population of 325 million and huge opportunities for cooperation in various sectors, but their trade volume was only around $1.3 billion.

"We say we are brotherly but it doesn't reflect in our trade," Sangu said. "The private sector, being the backbone of the economy, should come forward to improve trade and economic relations."

He said Turkey's exports, which reached $256 billion last year, were mostly to the European Union, thanks to a customs union agreement that would be updated this year to give Turkey more access to countries that have free trade agreements with the EU.

“Turkey Customs Union Agreement, which was signed 20 years ago, will be updated this year and would give Turkey more access to those countries with whom the EU has signed FTAs,” the envoy said. He advised Pakistani businesses to bring semi-processed raw materials to Turkey, where they could be processed and exported to the EU market with zero tax.

Sangu said Turkish investment in Pakistan stood at around $2.5 billion but "it was nothing and needs to be improved".

“Turkish companies operating in Pakistan have been facing minor issues but the SIFC is working very hard to solve these issues, which will certainly encourage other Turkish companies to invest in Pakistan.”

He further mentioned that Arçelik was the only Turkish company, which has established a R&D center in Pakistan, which was very crucial as although many other foreign companies were also operating in Pakistan, none of them have brought R&D or transferred technology to Pakistan.

“Arçelik has invested almost $800 million in Pakistan since 2016 and has not remitted anything outside as whatever they earn is reinvested in Pakistan, which clearly shows the real brotherhood between the two countries.”

He also said another Turkish company was interested in setting up a solar panel production unit in Pakistan.

Identifying the potential sectors for Turkish investment, Sangu mentioned that there was a huge potential in the dairy and meat sectors as Pakistan, despite producing high-quality milk, has been able to process only 3 percent of it. "This was an area where business communities of both countries can look into the possibility of undertaking joint ventures."

President KCCI Iftikhar Ahmed Sheikh, senior vice president Altaf A. Ghaffar, vice president Tanveer Ahmed Barry and KCCI managing committee members were also present at the meeting.