Ambassador Andreas Ferrarese for cultural connectivity to promote two- way trade between Italy, Pakistan

Covert

Islamabad: Italy’s Ambassador to Pakistan Andreas Ferrarese this week underlined the importance of encouraging cultural connectivity to promote the two- way trade between Italy and Pakistan.

Speaking to the business community in Islamabad, the envoy pointed out that vast opportunities were available to enhance mutual trade and investment between Pakistan and Italy. He said the businessmen and traders from both countries can reap the benefits.

Ambassador Andreas Ferrarese urged Pakistani businessmen and traders to make efforts to promote mutual trade and economic ties between the two nations.

“Economic, trade and cultural relations between Italy and Pakistan are at an all-time high,” he said. “Italy hosts the largest number of Pakistani diaspora in the European Union (EU).”

Stating figures, he said that workers remittances from Italy hit historic high of $601 million in FY21 and as a result, Italy emerged as the seventh largest global destination for workers remittances to Pakistan and ranked first among the countries in the EU.

He stressed that there was immense potential for trade in different sectors of the economy and underlined the need to explore it by engaging in a dialogue process through the Pak-Italy Joint Economic Commission.

Currently, Italy is providing technical assistance in agriculture and textiles up-gradation through modern machinery, value addition in agriculture, leather and marble sectors, he pointed out.

“Pakistan is working to expand this collaboration and add agricultural items including dairy and livestock, olives and olive products, plastics, processed food and the construction sector to it,” he said.

Ambassador Ferrarese was of the view that Italy wanted to start a new era of economic and trade cooperation with Pakistan through transfer of technology and upgrade of Pakistan’s textile industry.