President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Tamila Mertskhulava held a meeting with President of Business Association for Cooperation with Pakistan - BACP (the “BACP”) Mr. Javad Rahman Shehria and Advisor to the President of the Association, Head of the Trade Department "Russia-Pakistan" Anna Davydyuk.

Welcoming the guests, Tamila Mertskhulava stressed that despite the restrictive quarantine measures caused by the spread of coronavirus infection, the representative of Pakistan paid a friendly visit aimed at implementation of possible joint projects, establishment and expansion of business links, experience exchange and mutually beneficial cooperation in the area of business among Abkhazian and Pakistani individuals, enterprises and organizations.

“Abkhazia and Pakistan are interested in expanding business ties. One of the main reasons for the lack of interaction is information gap among entrepreneurs on the conduct of business rules and data on the trade, economic and investment potential of Abkhazia and Pakistan, as well as complex logistics and lack of trade between them, ” stated the CCI President.

She recalled that today the world trade turnover is unstable and prone to crisis phenomena in the economy.

Despite this, Abkhazia maintains trade relations with more than 30 countries. This is facilitated by the intergovernmental agreements reached in various areas, primarily with the main strategic and trade partner - the Russian Federation, which supports the republic in different fields. Abkhaz businessmen, despite all the obstacles, independently negotiate agreements on long-term and mutually beneficial terms, under the facilitation of the CCI of RA and relevant ministries.

Moreover, investment cooperation will allow us to have a balanced and stable bilateral trade and economic relations with foreign partners,” said Tamila Mertskhulava.

The President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry shared information on possibilities of the chamber in organizing various kinds of events, interaction with territorial chambers of commerce and industry of Russia and abroad, business missions and participation of the organization in international projects.

In terms of similarity of the two countries, Tamila Mertskhulava noted that imports dominate exports both in Pakistan and in Abkhazia. At the same time, Pakistan is one of the ten largest suppliers of tangerines and Abkhazia has occupied its niche in the Russian market, Abkhaz tangerines are in high demand among the Russian buyer, as evidenced by the high volume of citrus exports to Russia.

The President of the Chamber stated that the agricultural sector is well developed in Pakistan - there is great potential in the supply of agricultural and livestock products, the textile industry, software, production of medical equipment, pharmaceutical products are exported and much more. In terms of tourism, the country is interesting for its unique natural attractions, impressive architecture and modern cities.

“I think there are many areas that could enable us to build bilateral cooperation on a long-term basis.We are ready to work with entrepreneurs of both countries, hold business events with Pakistani colleagues both inside Abkhazia and organize a number of business missions to your fabulous country” stressed Tamila Mertskhulava.
In turn, Mr. Javad Rahman Shehria expressed gratitude to the leadership of the CCI for a warm reception.

“This is a very important meeting for me. We are interested in establishing partnership and developing long-term efficient and mutually beneficial cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Abkhazia. I consider it necessary and express my readiness to provide assistance in the development of bilateral trade and economic relations, "- said the President of “BACP”.

He subscribed to the opinion of the President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry that the international situation in geopolitics, economy and culture has changed recently. At the moment, the leaderships of many countries are considering how to change their approach to international relations.

“Yesterday we discussed a number of projects and a memorandum was signed between the investment agency of Abkhazia and “BACP”. There was a meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, where we discussed several issues of mutual interest”, said Mr. Javad Shehria.

Further, the meeting participants discussed ways to expand business cooperation between the two countries. In particular, they discussed the creation of joint Abkhaz-Pakistani enterprises with the participation of the State Investment Agency of the Republic of Abkhazia, the creation of a roadmap for further interaction, an exhibition of Pakistani manufacturers in Abkhazia, as well as the possibility of participation of Abkhaz entrepreneurs in exhibitions in Pakistan.

Cooperation Agreement between the CCI of RA and the Business Association for Cooperation with Pakistan - BACP was signed at the end of the meeting.

The Abkhaz side was represented by Ilona Lakerbaya-Director of the State Investment Agency under the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Abkhazia, Dzhemal Bganba-Head of the Department of Strategic Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ia Gabunia-Assistant to the President of the CCI of RA for External Relations.