PESHAWAR: The exhibition of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa tourism and investment potential concluded with much fanfare at the Pakistan Pavilion at Dubai Expo, said a communique received here on Friday.
National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser was the chief guest while Pakistan’s Ambassador to United Arab Emirates Afzaal Mahmood was the guest of honor at the closing ceremony.
Prominent representatives of the Pakistan Business Council, members of the Pakhtun Business Community, start-ups, and representatives from different walks of life also attended the event.
An overview of the activities performed by various departments of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government during the month-long exhibition was presented to the speaker.
Chief Executive Officer Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Board of Investment and Trade Hassan Daud Butt briefed the participants about the investment promotion activities held throughout the month.
He informed that the plan was made in a way, to begin with cottage industry, leading up to the agriculture sector. He also informed that desired results of the investment conferences were well achieved where 44 memorandum of understandings (MoUs) worth $8 billion in various sectors were signed.
Director General Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Culture and Tourism Authority (KPCTA) Kamran Afridi highlighted the cultural and tourism activities performed at Dubai Expo.
He also briefed the participants on the MoUs signed with various business partners for the promotion of tourism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The official told the audience that besides projects in hospitality and tourism, a new concept of integrated tourism was also introduced and the investors showed so much keenness to invest in the ITZs.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Additional Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah acknowledged the efforts of the team from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa who delivered on the vision of leadership in making the Dubai Expo 2020 a real success.
He reiterated the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s commitment to follow up the business and investment leads at Dubai Expo 2020.
He said that an investment council will further lookup materializing the MoUs signed so far. He informed the participants that investors had already started contacting the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for taking up investment projects.
Pakistan’s Ambassador Afzaal Mahmood appreciated the efforts of the KP team, whose initiatives made the expo a huge success. He reaffirmed his resolve to provide all possible support to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s team for taking forward the initiatives of the Dubai Expo 2020 and materializing the leads into fruitful investment.
Advisor to the Prime Minister on Overseas Pakistanis Ayub Afridi appreciated the efforts of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa team and said that the performance displayed by all the members was professional, and achieved much more than the expectations.
He expressed the hope that the initiatives taken at the Dubai Expo would be successfully transformed into fruitful investments through the engagement of public-private stakeholders and overseas Pakistanis.
The NA Speaker, Asad Qaisar, lauded the wonderful display of Pakistan’s tourism, business potential, and cultural image at the Dubai Expo.
He stressed the need for follow-up of commitments made and MoUs signed at the mega exhibition.
He said that he would personally look into the follow-up activities of the Expo leads. He said that people-centered initiatives were long-lasting and always led to success.
The potential of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa could be realized through sustained efforts and public-private partnerships.
At the end of the ceremony, commendation certificates were distributed amongst various stakeholders, whose efforts made the month-long display of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa tourism and investment potential at the Dubai Expo a huge success.
