China should provide full support to Pakistan in its economic development because in a number of areas, through technological cooperation, research and investment, positive results can be achieved.

President of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Mahfooz Elahi said that the business community of Pakistan is quite hopeful that business new ties will be established with the Chinese entrepreneurs who are visiting with the Prime Minister of China, Wen Jiabao.

He said that Pakistani businessmen are especially interested in B2B meetings in the areas of energy, infrastructure development, mineral and mining, agriculture and food processing. Also transfer of technology and collaborative research will be the priority areas in which businessmen of both countries can work together.

Mahfooz Elahi said that it is expected that especially deals will take place in energy sector, because Pakistani is facing huge shortage energy for the last several years which has pushed back the economy of Pakistan. Already china is cooperating in producing energy, through nuclear technology but development of solar technology can also be another area of cooperation.

Chinese companies can also play an important role in building small hydropower dams for producing electricity ranging from 500 MW to 1000 MW. These dams can be built at different places across the country to meet the local needs.

President said that infrastructure development can be important area, because due to heavy flood, a large number of roads network and bridges have badly damaged.  Also overall infrastructure in country needs to be developed on modern lines for speedy transportation. He stressed to set up railway line and a pipeline from Gwadar to China to connect the two countries. It also helps regional stability, common development and prosperity.

He said that Chinese interest in Pakistan’s economic growth is growing day by day. For instance, in Pakistan there are more than 120 companies and about 10,000 Chinese working in different sectors like mining, energy exploration and infrastructure building. He said that Pakistan has good potential in textile sector, but other areas of agriculture sectors can be focused for export of fruits that are not being produced in China, like mangoes and citrus.

Mahfooz Elahi hoped that as a result of upcoming visit bilateral trade volume will go further up. Pakistan government should also sponsor business delegations to visit China to explore possibilities of businesses, but currently, private sector of Pakistan on self-basis visits China to developing business linkages with the Chinese companies, he added.

President said that Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry regularly sends business delegations to different cities of China, and recently, a trade delegation has visited Canton and Shenzhen fair. These fairs always act as a source of creating opportunities for developing business relations and enhancing the bilateral trade.