Washington DC, 24 February 2023 (TDI): The Minister for Commerce of Pakistan, Syed Naveed Qamar held a virtual meeting with Pakistani American IT Professionals on Thursday.
It is pertinent to note that the Commerce Minister visited the United States (US) to hold a meeting with the US Trade Ambassador, Katherine Tai for Pak-US Trade and Investment Framework Agreement.
The trade talks ended with Syed Qamar seeking greater cooperation in the Information Technology and Agriculture sectors. After the trade talk, he also held a virtual meeting with Pakistani tech professionals from Silicon Valley.
He appreciated and underscored the efforts in strengthening Pakistan’s technology sectors and assured them of the government’s continued support for facilitating their investments.
During the virtual meeting, Syed Qamar stated, “Our future is IT. If we don’t facilitate this industry, the goal of enhancing Pakistan’s exports would remain elusive.”
He also added that better facilities and the right policies could lead to exponential growth in this sector.
The participants also suggested creating a conducive environment for the growth of the IT sector in the country and also for strengthening Pak-US trade ties.
The suggestions included, “Simplification of the tax regime for IT businesses, training, and capacity building of the professionals, simplified transactions, the introduction of IT subjects in schools and colleges and better inter-ministerial coordination.”
Syed Qamar also responded that strengthening Pak-US cooperation in the IT sector was” one of the major agendas” during the TIFA talks. He hoped that the outcome generated during the talks could result in significant progress in all relevant areas.
The Pakistani American IT Professionals urged the Minister to open a consulate in San Francisco to serve as an IT hub for Pakistani professionals and area experts.
Also Read: Pak-US talks on TIFA begin today
Earlier on Wednesday, Minister Syed Qamar met with Special Representative for Commercial and Businesses affairs Dilawar Syed at the Embassy of Pakistan to discuss various options for enhancing bilateral trade.
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