ISLAMABAD,(MILLAT+APP): Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif
on Thursday said Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan being members of Central
Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) can jointly achieve the
goals in areas including transport, energy, and trade policy to
alleviate poverty in the region.
Talking to Kojoshev Arzybek Orozbekovich, Minister of Economy
of the Kyrgyz Republic here at the PM House, the Prime Minister said
promotion of regional connectivity is one of the seven pillars of
the government’s development strategy.
The Prime Minister said the government was actively pursuing
this initiative which had the potential to integrate South Asia,
China and Central Asia-the three engines of growth in Asia.
Welcoming the Kyrgyz delegation, the Prime Minister said
Pakistan appreciated Kyrgyzstan government’s progressive policies.
He said the people of Pakistan were happy to witness the
progress and development of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan.
The Prime Minister said Pakistan economy’s growth rate had
risen by 4.84 percent during last three years and it now offered
great investment opportunities for foreign investors.
He said Pakistan had embarked upon a major reform programme
that aims at fiscal stabilization, mobilizing domestic resources,
phasing out subsides, restructuring the power sector and other
public sector enterprises and strengthening the social safety nets.
The Prime Minister said the role of CASA 1000 was important in
redressing the power shortages in Pakistan and expressed
satisfaction that the project was moving satisfactorily.
He mentioned that the recent meeting of Joint Working Group
held in Dubai on December 5-8, 2016, took some important decisions
which will ensure the project’s timely completion.
The Prime Minister emphasized that the present volume of total
trade between the two countries can be further enhanced and hoped
that the third session of Pak-Kyrgyzstan JMC would prove fruitful
in enhancing bilateral trade and economic relationships.
The Pakistan-Kyrgyzstan Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) was
established in 1994 and the volume of trade between Pakistan and
Kyrgyzstan amounted to US $ 5.573 Million from 2011 to 2016.