KARACHI: Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh, while appreciating Karachi Chamber for organizing 19th My Karachi Exhibition in a lively manner, informed that he will be leaving for Denmark this month to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Maersk, a renowned European shipping giant, which intends to invest US$2 billion.
“After inking MoU, Maersk will start investing from October 2024 in numerous areas including infrastructure, terminals, warehousing and shipbreaking etc. which would make Karachi a transshipment hub”, he added while delivering his speech after a press briefing at Karachi Expo Center by Chairman Businessmen Group (BMG) Zubair Motiwala to mark the closing of 19th My Karachi Exhibition.
President KCCI Iftikhar Ahmed Sheikh, Senior Vice President Altaf A. Ghaffar, Vice President Tanveer Ahmed Barry, Chairman Special Committee for My Karachi Exhibition Muhammad Idrees, Junaid Esmail Makda, Agha Shahab Ahmed Khan, Tariq Yousuf and KCCI Managing Committee members were also present on the occasion.
Maritime Minister said, “Karachi is undoubtedly the hub of Pakistan which holds excellent potential for enhancing exports. To attain this objective, the maritime ministry is making all out efforts for availability of an enabling environment but the business community will also have to come forward to steer the country on a path to economic prosperity.”
He noted that India was exporting 40 times greater than Pakistan’s marine exports, hence, the business community must seriously explore this sector which holds excellent potential. “To encourage investment in maritime sector, the government has relinquished sales tax on processing plants, fisheries seeds and feed etc. in this year’s budget. “We are ready to provide all types of facilities including land where businessmen can establish processing plants for marine exports”, he added.
Qaiser Sheikh further stated that PM Shehbaz Sharif was working day and night for the progress and prosperity of Pakistan and its economy by particularly focusing on creating an enabling environment for business community. “We are targeting to double the exports in next five years by focusing on restoring the confidence local and foreign investors could be encouraged to invest in Pakistan, particularly Karachi.”
Commenting on 19th My Karachi Exhibition, the Minister said that this exhibition has gained a lot of popularity since its inception as it keeps growing and offers something unique to visitors every year. “I am delighted to see that Karachiites are densely participating in this show which offers a wide range of products at subsidized rates”, he said, adding that the success of My Karachi can only be attributed to teamwork under the supervision of Chairman BMG Zubair Motiwala and Chairman Special Committee for My Karachi Exhibition Muhammad Idrees.
Chairman BMG Zubair Motiwala, during press briefing, informed that 20th My Karachi Exhibition will be staged from 21st February to 23rd February 2025 which is likely to be participated by more local and foreign exhibitors and it is going to offer more features and facilities to visitors.
Commenting on achievements of 19th My Karachi Exhibition, he informed that around 17 countries displayed their products and services in this year’s exhibition whereas more than 300 stalls were established which offered discounts in between 20 to 50 percent. “Around 700,000 visitors poured into Expo Center to witness My Karachi Exhibition. The basic idea is to present a peaceful picture of Karachi and show Karachi’s and Pakistan’s vibrancy to the whole world.”
While highlighting the journey of My Karachi, Motiwala stated that Late Siraj planted My Karachi Exhibition in 2004 when the law-and-order situation was Karachi was not so good, hence, the federal government, under the premiership of Shaukat Aziz, advised KCCI to organize some kind of an event so that a positive message about law-and-order situation peace in Karachi could be sent to the rest of the world.
Keeping in view the shabby condition of Expo Center, Zubair Motiwala said that TDAP was in the process of redoing all halls of Expo Center in addition to constructing an IT Tower along with a hotel which have been approved by the government.
General Secretary BMG AQ Khalil, in his remarks, stated that the purchasing power of public has terribly eroded nowadays mainly due to unbearably high energy tariffs, hence, KCCI and BMG have jointly devised an effective plan of action so that all energy-related issues could be resolved and the widely demanded renegotiations with IPPs also take place. “High tariffs of gas and electricity along with petroleum prices are mainly responsible for fueling the inflation”, he opined, adding that although the government claims about inflation going down but it was not being felt at grass root level, hence, the government will have to take steps for providing relief to public.”
President KCCI Iftikhar Ahmed Shiekh, while appreciating the support extended by media to make My Karachi Exhibition successful, congratulated Chairman BMG Zubair Motiwala, Vice Chairmen BMG, Chairman Special Committee for My Karachi Exhibition Muhammad Idrees and Managing Committee Members for making extraordinary efforts to make My Karachi Exhibition successful. “I hope that they all will continue to work with similar zeal to further improve My Karachi Exhibition and also the performance of Karachi Chamber.”
He said that KCCI witnessed tremendous public response in this year’s exhibition which provided a perfect opportunity to carry out shopping at discounted rates in a safe and secure environment. “In addition to leading brands, a large number of women entrepreneurs were also provided stalls at subsidized rates whereas free-of-cost stalls were also given to several educational and healthcare institutions.”
Maritime Minister to leave for Denmark this month to ink MoU for US$2bln investment by Maersk
