Kazakhstan, Pakistan plan to achieve bilateral trade target of $1bn

ISLAMABAD (APP) - Kazakh Ambassador, Yerzhan Kistafin on Thursday said that Kazakhstan and Pakistan are holding dialogue on a six-point framework to take bilateral trade volume up to $1 billion to eventually reach optimum level of the country’s trade potential.

The potential of bilateral trade between Pakistan cand Kazakhstan is up to $ 14 billion and both countries intend to take bilateral trade to $1 billion in the next two years, for which both sides will hold Joint Working Groups (JWGs) meetings in six different sectors in current month of September and negotiations on several agreements including trade and logistics will be held, he said.

Talking to the media, Kazakh Ambassador to Pakistan, QYerzhan Kistafin said the agenda of the Kazakhstan President will be discussed in the meetings of JWGs in IT, agriculture, education, defense, trade and tourism.

He said that Pakistan should be part of the “International, North-South connectivity Corridor and the Trans-Caspian Middle Corridor Projects,” and in future the Gwadar port will be connected to the North-South Corridor and Middle Corridor projects.

The Ambassador said that these regional connectivity corridors will not only connect the East and West directly, but Pakistan will also be connected to the ports of Kazakhstan and transcontinental trade destinations, including the European Union and Central and South Asian states.

Ambassador Kistafin said, “We strongly support the Pakistan-Uzbekistan-Afghanistan Transit Railway project.”

Replying to a question, he said that the President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev will visit Pakistan in November this year and his visit will prove to be a milestone in the expansion of economic and trade relations between the two countries.

Recently, President of Kazakhstan announced a road-map for promoting artificial intelligence and digitalisation in the country, he said.

The Ambassador said that this year, several events are being held in Kazakhstan and President Totayev has given the nation an action plan on artificial intelligence and digital transformation on September 8 in Astana and expressed his
vision for digitalization of Kazakhstan.

Both sides agreed to strengthen cooperation between the relevant institutions and to promptly prepare the necessary agreements in priority areas for their subsequent signing and practical implementation, he said.