Friday, May 3, 2019

SAARC CCI meeting kicks off in Kathmandu


Kathmandu, May 2
The 77th Executive Committee Meeting of the SAARC Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SAARC CCI) began in Chandragiri hill, Kahmandu, on Thursday.
Addressing the meeting, Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara said that the meeting of the regional business organisation would also help move ahead the agenda of regional cooperation.
He stressed on enhanced cooperation in business-economic, socio-cultural, technical and scientific fields.
"We need to strengthen cooperation in common issues. The region needs to create collective self-reliance, therefore, we should support and contribute to each other when required," he said.
He suggested collaborative efforts of the SAARC member coutries to bring improvements in the lives of the people in the region.
President of the SAARC CCI Ruwan Edirisinghe said that the regional platform like SAARC should be strengthened to fight with the terror attacks and other challenges that was creating problems to social life and economic activities.
"The world has realised the importance of the SAARC region in the global platform, but we have failed to comprehend this," he said.
President of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) Bhawani Rana said that political stability in Nepal had ensured policy stability for investment and business and urged the visiting delegates to invest here.
"You are here in right time as we just concluded Nepal Investment Summit which showcased more than 70 large business and infrastructure projects. You can explore opportunities of investment in priority and other areas in the country," she said.
She said that there was a need to create greater connectivity in multiple areas like business, people and culture.
"Greater contact among the private sectors of the member countriesis needed as well," she stated.
She stressed on the need to operationalise the South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA) agreement and urged the SAARC CCI to find ways for the same.
Pakistani mbassador to Nepal Mazhar Javed said that the SAARC was unable to materialise a fraction of its potential and capacity due to the differences among the members.
"We will be blamed for this by our future generations," he said.
He said that the whole region should endorse Nepal government's motion of 'Prosperous Nepal: Happy Nepali' 
Vice-President of SAARC CCI (Nepal) Chandi Raj Dhakal also urged the businesspersons from the region to tap the investment potential in Nepal.
Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 3 March 2019. 

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