ISLAMABAD: Malaysian High Commissioner to Pakistan Ikram Mohammad Ibrahim has urged his country’s business community to seize the investment opportunities offered by Pakistan, especially within the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) framework.
“CPEC brings a great opportunity for Malaysian businessmen to look into, and penetrate, the Pakistani market,” Ikram stated while speaking at the Pakistan-Malaysia Business Opportunities Conference (BOC) in Kaula Lumpur on Monday. “The corridor includes road and railway networks that would stretch from the western Chinese city of Kashgar in China’s Xinjiang province to Pakistan’s second-largest port of Gwadar,” he informed.
The envoy noted that following the exchange of visits between the heads of states of Pakistan and Malaysia, the countries were now moving to a greater level of partnership and cooperation.
He urged the Malaysia-Pakistan Business Council (MALPAK) to play its due role in arranging business-to-business meetings between the business communities of the two countries.
The BOC comprised of more than 300 participants, including about 150 Malaysian companies, representing various sectors including tourism, pharmaceutical, chemical, plastic, textile, surgical goods, furniture and construction.
Pakistan’s Charge d’Affaires to Malaysia Atif Sharif Mian said on the occasion that CPEC would continue to create more opportunities for joint investments in the future.
“In Pakistan’s context, the project is a $40-50 billion investment and it is going to upgrade all the infrastructures as well as across other (sectors of) Pakistan’s economy. It is a massive corridor and will definitely bring in more traffic for investments,” he said. “Malaysia is globally known for providing quality services and expertise on railways, roadways and construction; the country should look to invest in these areas.”
Atif Sharif Mian said the focus of the BOC was to promote and engage the private sectors of both countries.
“Although the governments have resolved to enhance bilateral trade ties, it is the private sectors that will need to form close liaison in order to avail the investment opportunities,” he said.
