(15 Jan, 2018)
President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum (PBIF), President AKIA, Senior Vice Chairman of the Businessmen Panel of FPCCI and former provincial minister Mian Zahid Hussain on Monday said with minimal investment of 15 – 20 billion rupees in the nostalgic city, Chaman can reach to the heights of economic growth resulting in prosper Pakistan and even more prosper Baluchistan.
Strategically Chaman is the best suitable city to become a centre of trade for Afghanistan, Iran and Central Asian countries, he said. With the help of Government, this city can play a vital role in increased foreign exchange, employment and exports.
The veteran businessman while talking to the business community said that in 2008 it was proposed to extend the Chaman – Quetta railway track to central Asia through Afghanistan but is still pending, which after completion can change the economical venue of the city and can boost trade in the entire region by extending Pakistani trade to even European markets.
Policy makers and Government institutions should take steps for the betterment of city’s infrastructure, transportation system and should resolve the problems faced by local traders and the true potential of the city may be discovered in term of increased foreign exchange and better national economy.
Chaman is famous across the country for the supply of dry fruits, grapes, apricots, plums, peaches, melons, apples and other fruits from Afghanistan. Under the CPEC Afghanistan via Chaman will be connected to Gwader through M-8, which will further boost economic activities of the city.
The role of Chaman chamber of commerce and industry is commendable in highlighting the issues of local traders including corruption, lack in infrastructure, marketing tools, energy crisis and smuggling which delay the process of city’s development.
Though, smuggling is reduced by sealing the Pak-Afghan border but it negatively impacted the Pak-Afghan trade and caused increased in unemployment and crime rate, therefore, the Integrated Transit Trade Management system (ITTMS) should be implemented on early basis so that trade can be flourished between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
