Pakistan and Hungary on Thursday launched the ‘Trade & Economic Window’ for collaboration in diverse fields and explore joint ventures in energy, information technology and tourism sectors of both county.
According to press release issued here by the APBF, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijjarto, through video-link, launched the Hungary-Pakistan Trade & Economic Window on initiative of the All Pakistan Business Forum (APBF) and the Hungarian Export Promotion Agency (HEPA). Ambassador to Hungary Dr. Muhammad Aejaz, Hungarian Ambassador to Pakistan Bela Fazekas, APBF President Syed Maaz Mahmood and APBF Chairman Ibrahim Qureshi also addressed the online session where B2B meetings of both Pakistan and Hungarian business community was also arranged by the APBF.
Speaking on the occasion, Foreign Minister Qureshi hailed the efforts of APBF to open the Trade & Economic Window, saying the move would strengthen cooperation between Pakistan and Hungary in a number of areas including energy, alternative energy, information technology, food and tourism.
Qureshi announced that Pakistan was ready to host the second meeting of the Pakistan-Hungary Joint Economic Commission in near future. He mentioned that promotion of high-level ties between the two countries could increase the volume of bilateral trade. He said according to the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan, the government was shifting focus from geopolitics to geo-economics. Qureshi said as per global business rankings, Pakistan’s position was improved by 28 points due to the government’s economic policies. He said Pakistan attached special importance to its bilateral relations with Hungary and thanked the government of Hungary for providing scholarships to the Pakistani students. Hungary’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Hungary’s big companies relating to food, technology, medical and IT were planning to invest in Pakistan. To promote bilateral cooperation in food security, he said, Hungary’s Agricultural University was in touch with Pakistan’s Agriculture Council. The Hungarian Foreign Minister thanked Foreign Minister Qureshi for his efforts in promoting bilateral cooperation in various fields. Foreign Minister Qureshi invited his Hungarian counterpart to visit Pakistan, which he accepted and said that he would soon be visiting the country along with a business delegation.
APBF President Syed Maaz Mahmood said that in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic, as the importance of virtual communication has increased manifold, the launch of ‘Hungary-Pakistan Trade & amp; Economic Window’-HPTEW on ‘www.apbf.com.pk’ will promote two-way trade links and strengthen understanding between Pakistan and Hungary. He pointed out that the Window is a complete and user-friendly online resource of both countries’ business information in a post-Covid-19 perspective. This online platform is showcasing information regarding Hungarian businesses, which show interest to establish joint ventures with Pakistani companies. Likewise, the data of Pakistani companies will be available here for those who are keen to initiate cooperation with their Hungarian partners.
APBF Chairman Ibrahim Qureshi said that the launch of ‘Hungary-Pakistan Trade & Economic Window’ is the commendable effort of the APBF and the Hungarian Embassy, paving the way for further strengthening of cooperation between the business community of Pakistan and Hungary.
