FM Bilawal Bhutto is visiting Singapore on business.
According to Bilawal, the world should view Pakistan as a promising emerging market.
highlights the importance of relations with ASEAN for Pakistan.
On Friday, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Pakistan’s foreign minister, pleaded with the international community to take a “fresh look” at Pakistan and abandon preconceived notions about it.
Before his first trip to Singapore, Bilawal told The Strait Times, “As a young political leader, I firmly feel that the world has to take a fresh look at Pakistan, away from its stereotyped image.
Pakistan’s top ambassador told the Singapore-based journal that there are “many prospects in Pakistan awaiting the world”. But he added that lifting the travel warnings against Pakistan is the first step in taking advantage of those prospects.
The world needs to view us objectively as a bright emerging market, the Bilawal firmly believed. He emphasised the youth of Pakistan’s population and its middle class, which is expanding quickly.
Links to ASEAN
The Pakistani e-commerce market was one of the sectors the foreign minister cited. According to data from the German research firm Statista, he told the publication, the country’s e-commerce business is expected to produce US$7.67 billion in revenue in 2022.
In addition, he emphasised that Pakistan has a large number of independent contractors who offer services in the fields of IT, telecom, e-commerce, data analytics, financial services, music, and health.
Singapore and other ASEAN nations outsource a variety of financial and IT-related tasks, and they stand to gain much from our youthful people.
Pakistan’s top diplomat emphasised throughout the visit that relations with ASEAN nations are a vital priority for Islamabad. Islamabad wants to transform its collaboration with the regional grouping into a complete dialogue partnership, he continued.
“Some recent ASEAN efforts, which we believe would open up a wealth of trade and investment opportunities for rising economies like Pakistan, are of considerable importance to Pakistan. By engaging with South-east Asia, we think our start-up and fintech ecosystem can make significant contributions, added Bilawal.
According to the foreign minister, Pakistan places a high value on its relations with Singapore within the framework of ASEAN.
He emphasised how Pakistan was among the first nations to recognise Singapore after its independence and how Pakistani expatriates had a positive impact on the nation’s early development.
Bilawal pointed out how the two nations had exchanged high-level visits in the past, including former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew’s visits to Pakistan in 1988 and 1992, and former premier Benazir Bhutto’s visit in 1995.
“Over time, we lost the momentum in our bilateral relations,” said Bilawal, adding that he was travelling to Singapore “to rekindle that momentum and intensify our bilateral exchanges. Pakistan is eager to improve all aspects of our partnership.
Encountering President Halimah
President Halimah Yacob was today visited by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.
The Foreign Office issued a statement saying, “In the meeting, enhanced engagement and mutually beneficial cooperation were discussed while the foreign minister shared Pakistan’s intention to intensify cooperation with ASEAN.”
FM @BBhuttoZardari met with his counterpart H.E. Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan @VivianBala in Singapore. The two leaders:
• Reviewed the state of bilateral relations
• Agreed to enhance bilateral engagements and cooperation
• Expressed support for ASEAN-led processes in Asia Pacific pic.twitter.com/JIS19UC8Re— Spokesperson 🇵🇰 MoFA (@ForeignOfficePk) December 9, 2022
Earlier, Bilawal Bhutto was hosted for breakfast by Singaporean FM Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, during which the two leaders discussed topics of shared interest.