Strong workers’ union culture in India

‘Japanese investors coming to Pakistan from India’ 

LAHORE: Japanese Ambassador to Pakistan Hiroshi Oe on Thursday said many big Japanese investors were seriously planning to make investment in Pakistan as they were facing problems because of strong workers union culture in India.

Speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry, he said the business environment in Pakistan was far better and it was a safer place as far as working conditions were concerned.

The economy and infrastructure development are the priority areas and Japan government is focusing on them.

Japanese government has hosted investment seminars for Pakistan to further strengthen bilateral relations. Japanese businessmen are being motivated for establishing business with their counterparts in Pakistan.

He said Japan would continue to provide financial and technical assistance to Pakistan, as we believed this country has a great potential for the future.

There are spectacular development and investment opportunities in various fields as few countries are gifted with natural resources, he said.

Pakistan is facing difficult challenges, which will be over soon, he added. We will continue to strive to deepen mutual understanding through economic, educational, cultural and political exchanges, he added.

There is wide scope of establishing joint ventures between business communities of the two countries. He said negative perception was a problem for Pakistan and it should be tackled on urgent basis.

Embassy in Pakistan is ready to grant visas to genuine businessmen who fulfill all requirements and recommendation of LCCI.

LCCI President Farooq Iftikhar said Japan, third biggest and one of the trillion dollar economies of the world was an important trading partner of Pakistan as well as a major donor.

He said availability of inadequate trade-related data was one of the hurdles in the way of expansion of trade between two countries.

Export potential of Pakistan is great which may be shared with Japanese businessmen and investors. Frequent exchange of sector-specific delegations can make the representatives of private sectors explore the opportunities of trade and investment in Pakistan, he added.

The share of Japan in Foreign Direct Investment in Pakistan is very low despite the fact the country has a unique standing in terms of its strategic location and countless investment opportunities.

There is huge scope in the field of power sector as Pakistan is in dire need of technologies in renewable/alternate energy, solar energy, wind energy etc.

Organisations like Japan International Cooperation Agency in social sector and Japan External Trade Organisation in promotion of trade and investment have played great role in Pakistan but more assistance was needed in order to bring long-term peace and prosperity in Pakistan.

Major exports of Pakistan to Japan consist of cotton yarn, petroleum oils, woven cotton fabric, vegetables, electro-medical apparatus, leather, leather garments, carpets and sports goods etc.

The main imports from Japan are cars, vessels and other floating structures, products of iron, trucks, parts and accessories of motor vehicles, textile machinery and etc.