President South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Chamber of Commerce and Industry Iftikhar Ali Malik Sunday stressed upon an urgent need of strengthening regional cooperation among member states to usher in an era of prosper-ity, progress, development and alleviating the object poverty in the region.
Speaking at a reception hosted in his honour by MNA Ch Tahir Iqbal Arain and former President FPCCI Ch Zahid Iqbal Arain, he stressed on the SAARC Council of Ministers to meet soon to ad-dress the procedural issues due to which SAARC and its apex allied bodies are greatly suffering and also take necessary measures to accelerate the eco-nomic and commercial growth among member states.
He said the Nepal currently chairing the coun-cil should help resolve the issue on priority.
He emphasised the need for greater cooperation to foster greater regional economic integration in South Asia and all impediments hindering smooth flow of economic growth be done away with forth-with with mutual consensus among m ember states.
MNA Ch Tahir Iqbal Arain in his welcome address eulogized the selfless life long meritorious services rendered by veteran octogenarian trade leader Iftik-har Ali Malik for the promotion of trade and help accelerating the pace of industrialisation in country by becoming a bridge between business community and government.
He said Iftikhar Malik is the only trade leader in the Pakistan since it’s inception who never availed sin-gle penny benefits either from government or public or private sector including from any chamber through out his life and bore all travelling and lodg-ing expenses from his pocket which speaks of his true leadership .
He hoped SAARC Chamber will achieve its very objectives for which it was conceived in 1985.
Zahid Iqbal Arain reiterated that SAARC Chamber must evolve a viable strategy to help remove the bottlenecks impeding intra-regional-trade and eco-nomic ties within the region.
