Islamabad: SAARC Chamber Saturday stressed the
urgent need for fully exploiting immense trade avenues and investment
potentials for economic integration in the region as South Asia holds
strategic position in the world.
According to a message received here from Kathmandu, Nepal, the leader of
Pakistani delegation Iftikhar Ali Malik, currently attending SAARC CCI
meeting and workshop, addressing the concluding session said SAARC member
countries must focus on removal of non-tariff barriers (NTBs) and work for
enhancing B2B interaction to boost trade. He highlighted that although
SAARC region holds immense trade and investment potential, being home to 21
percent of world’s population, it still remains one of the least integrated
regional blocs with intra-regional trade constituting only 5 percent of the
total world trade, in comparison to 51 percent for NAFTA and 25 percent for
ASEAN.
He said about 55 per cent of the total potential for intra-regional trade
in South Asia has not been fully exploited yet and this can be improved
through shared vision about objectives, transfer of technology and exchange
of research and development. He also mentioned that SAFTA has fallen short
of expectations due to complex safeguard measures and non-tariff barriers
(NTBs) among SAARC member countries.
