Economy: Pakistan

[Toramana]

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Thailand agreed to further enhance their bilateral ties especially in the field of trade and economic and cooperation in the fight against terrorism.
Both nations made commitments to boost cooperation during a meeting at the foreign office in which Pakistan was represented by the Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar whereas Thailand delegation was led by the Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand and Minister of Foreign Affairs Surapong Tovichakchaikul.
Addressing a joint press conference, the two foreign ministers expressed satisfaction to convene the meeting of Joint Trade Commission very soon. Foreign minister Khar said the trade between the two countries had crossed the one-billion-dollar mark this year and expressed hope that with the meeting of Joint Trade Commission, trade relations will improve further.
The meeting of the Joint Trade Commission will lead to negotiations for the free trade agreement between the two countries. The commerce and trade minister of Thailand will visit Pakistan next month to promote trade ties.
Speaking on the occasion, the deputy prime minister of Thailand Tovichakchaikul said, “It is great satisfaction that bilateral trade has crossed the one-billion-dollar mark this year but there is still room for further enhancing it.”
Direct investment from Thailand to Pakistan had been climbing and will continue to do so, he said.

“Pakistan can be a gateway for Thailand to improve trade links with Afghanistan and other countries.”
Tovichakchaikul also called upon Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf to discuss economic and diplomatic relations.
Ashraf expressed hope that trade relations and economic cooperation between the two countries will enhance further. He also appreciated the role being played by Thailand for Pakistan to become a full dialogue partner in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The Thai deputy prime minister informed the premier he will be meeting prominent business leaders of Pakistan to explore avenues of cooperation.

Pakistan, Thailand discuss economic, trade relations – The Express Tribune

[Toramana]

Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan to step up business ties

ISLAMABAD: Commerce ministers of Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan will meet in Islamabad next week to outline steps for enhancing economic cooperation, a critical step for the three neighbouring countries aimed at powering their economies, say officials.

The meeting is taking place in the backdrop of a trilateral summit held in Islamabad in February last year where President Asif Ali Zardari, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Afghan President Hamid Karzai asked their commerce ministers to prioritise cooperation for socio-economic development.

The three presidents spoke of the need for increasing trade with the help of facilitation measures‚ including preferential tariff and free trade arrangements as well as barter trade.

Earlier, the ministers were scheduled to meet in Islamabad in October and November last year, but the meeting could not take place because of pressing engagements of Pakistan’s commerce minister, sources told The Express Tribune.

“Afghan Commerce Minister Dr Anwarul Haq Ahadi will attend the first-ever trilateral meeting of trade ministers to explore ways to boost trade among the three countries,” an Afghan source said on Wednesday.

The ministers would discuss possibilities of increasing the trade volume and how to facilitate traders and remove bottlenecks in the way of commerce, he said.
Officials in the commerce ministry and Iranian diplomatic sources also confirmed the meeting.

The ministers will review proposals for expanding transit trade and encouraging private sector investment. Proposals for preferential tariff, free trade and barter trade will also come under discussion.

The trilateral summit had also tasked the ministers with discussing measures to enhance connectivity by promoting cooperation in projects related to infrastructure, road and rail links, transport and communications.
The meeting will pave the way for cooperation in energy, mining and mineral, agriculture and other sectors.

An Afghan official told The Express Tribune there were bright prospects for economic cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan, which could take bilateral trade to $5 billion from the current $2.5 billion.

A recent decision by the two governments on visa facilitation would also give a boost to economic activities and bilateral trade, he hoped.

Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan to step up business ties – The Express Tribune

[Toramana]

Percentage-wise, Balochistan trumps others in aspiring entrepreneurs

KARACHI: Among the four provinces of Pakistan, Balochistan has the highest percentage of residents, who expect to start a business within the next three years, according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) 2011, which was released in a ceremony at the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) on Wednesday.

About 36.3% people in Balochistan reported that they expected to set up a business in the near future in contrast to 34% in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 26% in Sindh and 23% in Punjab, the study said.

The study was carried out in 54 countries of the world to gauge entrepreneurial attitudes, activity and aspirations besides uncovering factors that determine the nature and level of entrepreneurial activity in a nation.

While 32.2% Pakistanis said they personally knew someone, who started a business in the past two years, the percentage of such people in Balochistan was 42.2%, highest among all provinces, reflecting the increased entrepreneurial activity going on in Balochistan.

Similarly, while 39.7% people reported on a national level that good start-up opportunities existed where they lived within the next six months, the percentage of Balochistan-based respondents with awareness of start-up opportunities in their neighbourhood was 56.6%.

Moreover, 85.1% people in Balochistan think that those successful in starting a new business have a high level of status and respect in society as opposed to the people of Punjab, for example, where 67.3% people relate entrepreneurship with status and respectability.

The report says that the number of people in Pakistan with a positive attitude towards entrepreneurship is less than the average of its factor-driven peer economies, which depend on subsistence agriculture and extraction of natural resources.

The total early-stage entrepreneurial activity (TEA) rate, which is the sum of nascent entrepreneurship rate and new business manager rate, in Pakistan is 9%, according to the GEM 2011 report.

This is lower than the average TEA rates for the factor-driven economies (14.2%) and efficiency-driven economies (13.8%), which have a higher degree of industrialisation and economies of scale.

However, Pakistan’s TEA rate is greater than the average TEA rate of innovation-driven economies (6.9%), which are research-oriented with expanding services sectors.

Given that the TEA is classified into two types – opportunity-based TEA and necessity-based TEA – roughly 4% of Pakistanis are involved in opportunity-based early-stage entrepreneurial activity, the report says, which is considerably less than the average of factor-driven economies (8.5%) and efficiency-driven economies (9%).

The male TEA rate in Pakistan is more than eight times that of the female TEA rate. The gender gap is pretty high as compared to other factor- and efficiency-driven countries.

The report says that the established business ownership (EBO) rate in Pakistan is 4%, which is lower than the average EBO rates for Pakistan’s peer factor-driven (6.2%), efficiency-driven (7.5%) and innovation-driven (7.2%) economies.

Also, the report states that over 9% of the adult population in Pakistan is trying to start a business (nascent entrepreneurs) – a ratio that is lower than the average of factor-driven economies (14.2%).

Speaking on the occasion, IBA Dean and Director Ishrat Husain said the findings of the GEM report would help policymakers devise better strategy to understand the dynamics of entrepreneurship in Pakistan.

“It’s heartening to know that some people still pay attention to research,” Husain said, adding that most guests on TV shows express strong views, which are based on emotions rather than empirical evidence.

Percentage-wise, Balochistan trumps others in aspiring entrepreneurs – The Express Tribune

[Toramana]

I can bet those from Baluchistan and Khyber Pukhtunkhwa are mostly Pashtuns. Our uneducated Pashtun is probably one of the most active entrepreneur-or and trader in the region.

And the ration for Baluchistan and KP is quite high compared to other provinces

[Kushan Prince]

Why should Pakistan be of any concern to pasthuns? just curious.

[randolph85]

most pashtuns live in pakistan.

pakistan has great potential but will never come close to reaching it.