President Alvi, UAE premier reiterate resolve to strengthen bilateral ties

In a meeting held here at the Leaders Pavilion at Dubai Expo 2020, the two leaders reaffirmed to strengthen the existing close fraternal relations between Pakistan and the UAE in diverse fields.

President Alvi said Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates enjoyed close fraternal relations, rooted deep in common faith, shared history and cultural affinities.

The two leaders reviewed prospects of growing bilateral relations on all fronts while discussing a number of regional and international issues of interest.

The President congratulated the Vice Minister and Prime Minister of the UAE on the successful inauguration of Dubai Expo 2020.

He lauded the tremendous efforts of the UAE government and Expo Management Team for organizing the world’s most diverse and widely participated exposition, which will remain open for six months.

The president underlined that Expo 2020 was a landmark event not just for the UAE but also for the whole region.

He added that Dubai Expo 2020 would offer a unique opportunity to the countries of the region and beyond to establish linkages and partnerships with multinational companies.

The President also briefed the UAE prime minister on the theme of the Pakistan Pavilion, which mainly focuses on showcasing the unexplored and undiscovered treasures of Pakistan.

Felicitating Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid on the ongoing golden jubilee celebrations of the United Arab Emirates, the President acknowledged the role of the UAE’s visionary leadership that helped transform the UAE into a hub for regional trade, transport, logistics, technology, and tourism.

The President and Sheikh Maktoum exchanged views on issues of bilateral and regional interest, including the situation in Afghanistan.

The President also apprised the UAE Prime Minister on the continued and blatant violations of fundamental human rights of the Kashmiri Muslims by the Occupying Indian Armed Forces in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

Recalling the historical fraternal relations between the two countries, the President reaffirmed Pakistan’s desire to forge closer and deeper cooperation with the United Arab Emirates in all fields.

The President also expressed gratitude to the leadership and people of the UAE for hosting 1.6 million Pakistanis in the UAE. He underlined that Pakistani expatriates in the UAE continued to play an important role to strengthen the bilateral bond and contributed significantly to the development of the two countries.

The President is undertaking a two-day bilateral visit to the UAE. After meeting the Prime Minister of the UAE, he formally inaugurated the Pakistan Pavilion at Dubai EXPO 2020.

'Focus on digitalization to financially empower people'                

Addressing an investment conferenceorganized by the Special Technology Zones Authority, President Dr Arif Alvi said Pakistan was focusing on the digital empowerment of people to enable them to benefit from the economic advancements of the information technology sector.

He said the government was making efforts to strengthen and develop the IT sector to cope with the challenges of the fourth revolution of information technology.              

The president expressed satisfaction that due to the efforts of the government, the information technology exports last year witnessed a surge of 50 per cent.               

He said Pakistan was a country with a 200 million population and a huge youth bulge and expressed confidence that the country was making tremendous progress in emerging sectors.    

He said the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan had realized that the ease of doing business would encourage the entrepreneurs to invest in Pakistan.               

He said the legislation on one-window operation under STZA was a significant step to bring improvement in the IT sector to cope with the challenges of the fourth revolution of information technology.               

Dr Alvi said the government was working with stakeholders and outstanding policies were being made to encourage foreigners to invest their capital in Pakistan.               

He stressed upon the importance of human development, with a specific focus on technology and database. 

Tourism sector of Pakistan was flourishing, which would also generate an economic boom, Alvi concluded.

SOURCE: APP