President of Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) Irfan Iqbal Shaikh emphasised the need of strengthening bilateral trade and investment ties between Pakistan and Bulgaria because current trade volume between the two countries is less than their potential.

He was talking to Bulgarian Ambassador to Pakistan Irena Gancheva, who visited the FPCCI office. He stated that the two countries have friendly diplomatic and commercial ties that date back over 57 years and that they share similar perspectives on a number of global problems.

He stated that there are prospects for cooperation and collaboration across a wide range of economic fields, which may benefit the people of the two countries. There is enormous room for the growth of economic cooperation, commerce, and investment between the two countries, he added.

He emphasised a number of the country's promising economic sectors, including mining, oil and gas exploration, tourism, agriculture, and energy production, and urged Bulgarian investors to seize the chance to strengthen the country's already strong diplomatic and trade connections.

The FPCCI head underlined the need to strengthen bilateral agricultural cooperation, as the country has huge livestock potential and ranks as one of the top milk-producing countries. According to him, Bulgaria has the finest yoghurt production knowledge in the world, and cooperation in the fields of agriculture and dairy development would help to increase the production of agri-value-added goods.

The existing level of bilateral trade between the two nations, he said, has to be increased by starting joint ventures in  agriculture, education, and tourism, as well as by forging business-to-business ties. Additionally, he urged Bulgarian investors to profit from the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Project's investment potential.

Speaking at the event, Ambassador Irena Gancheva reaffirmed her commitment to fostering the two countries' commercial and diplomatic ties and stated that such cooperation will improve people-to-people relationships. She said that a joint economic panel of the two countries was also set up in 2015 to look at ways to increase bilateral trade and investment. The envoy emphasised the necessity of diversifying trade and investment cooperation in dairy and agricultural industries.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk