LAHORE – Turkish Ambassador to Pakistan, Dr Irfan Neziroglu, visited the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) and discussed ways to expand bilateral trade with LCCI President Faheem Ur Rehman Saigol.
LCCI Senior Vice President Tanveer Ahmed Sheikh, Vice President Khurram Lodhi, Acting Consul General of Turkiya in Lahore, and Commercial Councillor and Executive Committee members were also present.
Dr Neziroglu lauded the LCCI for its vital role in promoting business and industrial growth. He remarked that whenever he visits Lahore, he makes it a point to visit the LCCI, calling it a “school” that has produced two Prime Ministers, a Foreign Minister, and a Deputy Prime Minister. He commended the LCCI as one of the most active and dynamic chambers in the region.
He emphasised the need to move from traditional, room-based approaches to more power-based systems to meet the demands of the modern global economy. He expressed Türkiye’s strong interest in initiating joint ventures in energy, IT, tourism, education, mining, and other vital sectors.
He said that Pakistan has great potential in the livestock sector, but its share in the international halal market remains low and requires more focused efforts to improve.
He also invited the LCCI President to lead a business delegation to Türkiye in November. He said that Türkiye is ready to share its advanced technologies with Pakistan so both countries can learn from each other and build upon existing expertise instead of starting from scratch.
He added that while defence cooperation between the two nations remains robust, there is a strong need to diversify trade and expand collaboration in other areas such as electronics, rice, leather, and especially textiles—a common strength of both economies. He further noted that Pakistan’s access to certain regional markets and Türkiye’s trade linkages can complement each other to create new opportunities for mutual growth.
Faheem Ur Rehman Saigol said that a large potential for economic cooperation remains untapped. He said that after the imposition of tariffs on Turkish products by the United States, new opportunities have emerged for Pakistan and Türkiye to enhance trade and initiate joint ventures. He stressed the importance of business-to-business (B2B) meetings, trade delegations, and continuous engagement between the private sectors of both nations. He also appreciated Türkiye’s steadfast support for Pakistan during the recent tensions with India. He emphasised that the Trade in Goods Agreement signed in 2022 offers a solid base to raise the bilateral trade volume to at least 5 billion dollars.
LCCI Senior Vice President Tanveer Ahmed Sheikh proposed that Türkiye could explore joint ventures with Pakistan in the automobile and other industrial sectors. Vice President Khurram Lodhi thanked the ambassador for his visit and reaffirmed LCCI’s full support for strengthening bilateral trade and investment relations.
