QUETTA: Chief Minister Balochistan Mir Abdul Quddus Bizenjo and British High Commissioner Dr. Christian Turner discussed issues related to the promotion of British cooperation and increasing investment in various sectors of the province.
It was decided in the meeting that these issues would be solved by promoting liaison between the Balochistan Board of Investment and Trade and the British Deputy High Commissioner for Trade.
Provincial Ministers including Sardar Abdul Rehman Khetran and Syed Ehsan Shah were also present on the occasion.
The Chief Minister and Provincial Ministers pointed out the investment opportunities in Balochistan and the areas for promotion of mutual cooperation and said that promotion of foreign investment in the province is one of the priorities of the provincial government.
The CM said the provision of a peaceful and conducive environment has been ensured for investors.
The Chief Minister apprised the British High Commissioner of the progress being made on the Reko-Diq project.
Appreciating the bold stand of the Chief Minister of Balochistan and the provincial government on the Reko-Diq project, the British High Commissioner said that the resumption of work on the Reko-Diq project would strengthen the confidence of foreign investors to invest in Balochistan and attract them.
In which British companies will also be involved and in connection with today’s meeting, through British Deputy High Commissioner for Trade, British investors will be informed about the investment opportunities in different sectors of Balochistan, he said.
The British High Commissioner said that there are historical ties between Pakistan and the United Kingdom of which we are proud and increasing the promotion of mutual cooperation with an independent Pakistan is one of the priorities of our government.
He said that at present the UK was providing assistance to Pakistan under DFID and UK Aid in the fields of education, health, climate change, scholarships, girls’ education and maternal and child health saying that more than 200 companies are investing in Pakistan.
He described the law and order situation in Balochistan as satisfactory and expressed keen interest in promoting mutual cooperation and increasing investment.
He assured that health, education, climate change and agriculture would be the key to a peaceful, prosperous and developed Balochistan, capacity building projects in the livestock, fisheries, and minerals sectors and service delivery system improvement projects will be included in the UK aid program while investing would be promoted in Balochistan under Public-Private Partnership, BOT, and business to Business mode.
The meeting also discussed the situation in Afghanistan and its implications for Pakistan and Balochistan in particular and agreed that in the event of instability in Afghanistan’s economic situation, it would have a direct impact on Pakistan and Balochistan.
On this occasion, the Chief Minister emphasized the need for the international community to play its role in reviving the economy in Afghanistan.
He said the law-and-order situation was improved saying that some anti-peace elements were trying to destabilize peace in the province saying the security agencies are successfully thwarting such operations and the elements involved are being dealt with severely.
He said that the so-called separatist movement in which hundreds of innocent people were killed which had created hatred among the people against him, now this movement is being died.
He said that problems could be solved only through dialogue and problems could not be addressed by guns and force. The Chief Minister said that the parliamentary system in the province was well established and democracy was continuing.
He said that Balochistan is a vast province and it has enormous opportunities for investment in coastal areas and mineral sectors.
The Chief Minister said that we are pursuing a policy of resolving all-important issues in an atmosphere of mutual consultation and trust. In-camera briefings were given to the elected representatives of Balochistan on the ReKo-Diq project.
He said all available resources were being utilized in a good manner for the development of Balochistan saying that we have a long border with Afghanistan.
If the situation in Afghanistan does not stabilize, it will have a direct impact on Balochistan and our security situation will be affected,” he said.
He said at present a large number of Afghan refugees are residing in Balochistan which is having a negative impact on the socio-economic sectors of the province.
The British High Commissioner fully agreed with the stance of the CM Balochistan and called for the role of the international community in improving the situation in Afghanistan.
