Pakistan’s High Commissioner to the UK H.E Mohammad Nafees Zakaria interacted with leading Pakistani businesses through a webinar on “’Exploring business opportunities with the UK” recently. It was jointly organized by the Institute of Business Management (IoBM), Karachi, and iwant.pk, a Pakistani B2B technology platform. The moderators were Mr. Imran Khalil, former Chairman Pak-UK Business Council and Ms. Fariha Shah, Former Marketing Manager, PepsiCo MENA. The webinar highlighted potential business opportunities for Pakistani exporters during the Covid-19 pandemic and beyond. The panelists included Mr. Julian Hamilton Barns, Chairman, Pakistan Britain Business Council (PBBC) and Honorary Consul of Pakistan in the UK; Mr. Rashid Iqbal, CEO PBBC; Mr. Talib Karim, President IoBM; Mr. Ahsan Jabbar, Founder and CEO, iwant.pk and Mr. Shafiq A. Shahzad, Trade and Investment Minister, Pakistan High Commission London.
High Commissioner Zakaria encouraged Pakistani businesses to augment their engagement with the customers in the UK. He said export opportunities for personal protective equipment (PPE) and high-quality edibles must be enhanced. H.E Zakaria encouraged businesses to establish a physical presence of their products in the UK at a designated Pakistan Pavilion. Mr. Roger Bayat recommended marketing Pakistan’s immense tech talent in the UK. Mr. Tariq Ikram, former Head of TDAP, said that the government and the industry could utilize data points to enhance trade opportunities. Mr. Talib Karim highlighted education as a sector where businesses from both ends can come together through virtual collaboration and an exchange of talent. The speakers agreed that local suppliers do require a consolidated virtual platform to showcase their products and to connect with potential UK importers.