Pakistan High Commission organized a webinar titled “Pakistan’s Regional Economic Integration: Challenges and Opportunities,” in collaboration with the Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS), on 9th November 2021. The webinar was conducted as a part of series of events the High Commission has been co-hosting with ISAS. Mr. Haroon Sharif, former Minister of State and Chairman Board of Investment was invited as the Guest Speaker. The event was moderated by Mr. Vinod Rai, Distinguished Visiting Research Fellow, ISAS. A broad spectrum of audience ranging from business chambers, infrastructure companies in Singapore, think-tanks, media and diplomatic Missions based in Singapore attended the webinar.
In his remarks, Mr. Sharif enumerated Government’s efforts to enhance trade and transit flows in Pakistan through enhanced connectivity. He highlighted the transformational potential of the China’s flagship Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the strategic China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that could steer the region towards sustainable growth. He also elaborated upon the structural reforms Pakistan needed to work on to increase its institutional capacity to maximise its trade potential. He underscored that factors such as pro-growth orientation of bureaucracy, mainstream role of private sector in economic diplomacy and investment in knowledge networks and human resource were crucial in increasing regional outreach for Pakistan. While emphasizing the need of a strong economic framework, Mr. Sharif noted that geo-political factors such as stability in Afghanistan, managing fallout of US-China rivalry and sustainable peace between India and Pakistan were critically important to benefit from the strategic regional endowments. He concluded by emphasizing the institutional shifts and investment in human resource as fundamental for the desired change towards prosperity.
The remarks were followed by a vibrant Q & A that included discussion on financial viability of investment models, scope of corporate bond market in Pakistan, measures to enhance export and improve cost efficiency, ensuring growth sustainability during COVID-19 and impact of geo-political tensions on regional economic growth, which were duly addressed by Mr. Sharif.