Sada-e-Watan Sydney ™
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Humayun Akhtar & HC Babar Malik Minister Mark Vaille & Trade Secretary
Report
about the Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar's Visit to Australia
(Special Coverage for Sada-e-Watan Sydney
prepared by Govt. officials)
As readers of Sada-e-Watan are aware,
last week Mr. Humayun Akhtar Khan Federal Minister for commerce, stayed in
Sydney to meet with the local dignitaries, businessmen & Head of Financial
institutions. He was accompanied by the Federal Commerce Secretary Mr. Asif Shah
and Consul General of Pakistan Mr. Azam Mohammed. He had a very short stay in
Sydney before leaving for a conference in Cairns. During his stay in Sydney, Mr.
Azam Mohammed introduced him with local Business personalities.
The Commerce Minister visited Sydney on 19th September and had meetings with
business leaders in connection with Pakistan’s export and attracting investment.
He met with the CEO of Macquarie Bank, CEO of Woolworths, Australian Wool
Innovation and Telstra. He addressed a business luncheon meeting where
leading importers and present & potential investors attended.
He went to Cairns on 20th September and had detailed bilateral meetings with
Australian Trade Minister and New Zealand Trade Minister. The Ministers
discussed positions in WTO and to carry the WTO negotiations forward. They also
discussed areas for increasing bilateral trade. They appreciated that
Pakistan-Australia Joint Trade Committee met for the first time in 16 years. New
Zealand also agreed that the Pakistan -New Zealand JTC should meet by end of
this year or early next year.
The Minister also met with DG WTO, US Trade Representative (A senior level
cabinet Minister for Trade) and addressed the Cairns group meeting. Pakistan
made several proposals to break the deadlock and move the WTO process forward.
The Secretary Commerce Mr. Asif Shah besides attending all the meetings with the
Minister including the Cairns group meeting also chaired the JTC. The JTC will
contribute to increased exports from Pakistan. The Consul General Azam Mohammed
also accompanied the trade delegation to attend the conference in Cairns.
The Federal Minister for Commerce met with the senior Executives of Telstra
Corporation. It is one of the biggest telecom companies. They showed their
interest in investment in Pakistan. The Commerce Minister assured them of every
possible support.
Federal minister for Commerce Mr. Humayun Akhtar Khan met with Michael Luscombe
CEO of Woolworths. M/S Woolworths Australia is one of the main Importers of
Pakistan focusing mainly on bed linen and some towels. The Minister
congratulated Michale Luscombe as he has just got elevated as CEO of Woolworths.
The minister invited him to visit Pakistan, which was confirmed by him. They
would look into textile and sports sectors of Pakistan to exploring import
opportunities from Pakistan.
The Federal Minister also met with Les Targ, the Deputy CEO of Australia Wool
Innovation Ltd. It is a public company owned by Woolgrowers. The minister
informed them of textile and garment cities in Pakistan. It was decided that
experts from Wool Innovation centre would visit Pakistan for seminars in major
cities to apprise the manufacturers for producing cotton wool products by using
merino, which will go a long way for our exports.
The minister also met with Allan Moss, MD of Macquarie Bank. For promoting
Australian investment in Pakistan, this Bank is going to be the most likely
financer. The CEO praised Pakistan’s economy in terms of its GDP Growth rate.
The Minister apprised them of the steps taken up by the Government of Pakistan
to create a conducive environment for investment. The Bank management showed its
interest in stocks and Real Estate.
The plenary session of Cairns Group on WTO was held in Australia. Federal
Minister for Commerce Mr. Humayun Akhtar Khan also attended the inaugural
plenary session. Besides Humayun Akhtar, there were ministers of trade and
representatives of seventeen other Cairns Group countries. Susan Shawab, U.S
Secretary Agriculture, and Director General of WTO, Mr. Pascal Lamy also
attended the plenary session as special guests.
The Cairns Group of agricultural exporting nations, which account for over 25
per cent of the world’s agricultural exports, celebrates 20 years of
concentrated efforts to liberalize trade in agriculture. The meeting brought
together Trade Ministers, officials and farm industry bodies from the 18 Cairns
Group countries Argentina, Australia, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia,
Costa Rica, Guatemala, Indonesia Malaysia, New Zeeland, Pakistan, Paraguay, the
Philippines, South Africa, Thailand and Uruguay.
As the first significant gathering of Ministers since the suspension of the WTO
Doha round of negotiations, the Cairns Group Ministerial Meeting provided a
useful opportunity to discuss how to receive global trade talks. During the
current Doha negotiations the Cairns Group has continued to push for the
liberalization of trade in agricultural exports, a cause that unites the Group
across language, cultural and geographic boundaries, made up of developed and
developing countries across five continents, the Group is committed to achieving
free and fair trade in agriculture that provides real and sustainable benefits
for the developing world.
Commerce Minister Mr. Humayun Akhtar Khan also held bilateral meetings with
Director General WTO Mr. Pascal, US Trade Representative Mr. Susan Schwab and
New eland Trade Minister Mr. Phil Goff. Director General WTO appreciated the
Commerce Minister’s contribution in the negotiations and asked him to play his
role as a lead mediator to break the dead lock in the talks. Both the Commerce
Minister and US Trade Representative showed their resolve to move forward on the
Reconstruction Opportunity Zones (ROZs) and bilateral investment Treaty in
positive manner.
Federal Minister for Commerce Mr. Humayun Akhtar Khan met with Deputy Prime
Minister and Minister for Trade of Australia Mr. Mark Vaille in Cairns,
Australia. Both the ministers considered the proposals put froth by Pakistani
and Australian officials as a result of Joint Trade Commission (JTC) meeting
between the two governments. The Joint Trade Commission meeting was held today
in the morning. Secretary Commerce of Pakistan, Mr. Asif Shah headed the
delegation from the Pakistani side.
Both the ministers showed their resolve to continue this process of trade
negotiations and to find ways and means to increase bilateral trade through
better market access. The Australian minister was very cordial and welcomed the
suggestions made by Pakistani side. During the meeting different areas of mutual
interest were explored. The High Commissioner of Pakistan to Australia Mr. Babar
W. Malik was also present during the Pak Aust. Ministers meeting.
Commerce Minister Mr. Humayun Akhtar khan, who was attending Ministerial meeting
of Cairns Group of WTO member countries at, Australia also discussed with his
Australian counterpart Mr. Mark Vaille, Doha Development Agenda in the context
of stalled WTO talks. Both the Ministers agreed to work in a cordial manner with
each other and other trading partners to restart the negotiations as soon as
possible.
