Dar welcomes C’wealth inter-state trade target of $2tr by 2030

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar Monday lauded the Commonwealth’s goal to boost trade between member states to $2 trillion by 2030.

He also stressed that the Commonwealth should call for resolution of outstanding disputes among member states with greater urgency and press for the respect of international law and implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions.

After a meeting with Commonwealth Secretary General Patricia Scotland, Dar told a joint presser, “Pakistan supports the Commonwealth target of increasing trade between member states to $2 trillion by 2030.

“Pakistan sees itself as the hub for trade. Madam’s vision of two trillion Commonwealth trade is praiseworthy and achievable,” he added.

Patricia Scotland, during a five-day visit to Pakistan, in her deliberations with Dar, focused on the Commonwealth Connectivity Agenda for Trade and Investment (CCA), established at the 2018 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, where Commonwealth leaders committed to the vision of increasing intra-Commonwealth trade to $2 trillion by 2030, as well as expanding intra-Commonwealth investment.

Both sides said they agreed on the Foreign Office’s explored avenues of cooperation between Pakistan and the Commonwealth, with special focus on trade and investment, climate resilience, sustainable development, youth and women empowerment, education, and technological innovation.

Pakistan promised that it would continue to engage with the Commonwealth with a special focus on women empowerment and capacity-building of young people. The secretary general pointed to the CAA which, she said, was a platform for countries to exchange best practices and experiences to trade and investment and undertake domestic reforms through digitalisation.

Dar remarked, “We appreciate the secretary general’s tremendous contributions to promoting cooperation in the field of education, youth empowerment, capacity building and climate action. Secretary general’s personal support and climate advocacy on behalf of Pakistan, following the devastating floods of 2022 was instrumental in our recovery efforts.”

Pakistan, he pointed out, sees vast opportunities for collaboration with the Commonwealth in realising our developmental goals, particularly in education, skills development, youth and women empowerment, health, and environmental preservation.

“Pakistan will, therefore, continue to engage with the Commonwealth with a special focus on women empowerment and capacity building for the young people,” he added. Scotland, while recalling the role Pakistan played in the Commonwealth, particularly through the last eight years, when she was secretary general, commended Pakistan for its enthusiastic participation in all aspects of our work.

“But the truth is that our world is facing some very difficult problems and we have never needed each other more and the friendship that exists between our Commonwealth members more than we do today,” she said.

She lauded Pakistan’s efforts for having risen from “the terrible events of two years ago, hinting at the Monster Monsoon floods of 2022. “Pakistani resilience, passion and determination has been evident in the last two years. None of us will forget what happened here, when the floods affected more than 33 million Pakistanis, and more than 2m of those lost their homes; they lost their livelihoods, lost all that which makes life good,” she recalled.

About the Pakistani youth, Scotland highlighted the country was “leading for the Commonwealth in terms of our youth ministers’ meeting”. She pointed to Dar’s assurance of Pakistan’s stalwart support for the Commonwealth as “we go forward in a new digitalised AI-enabled world”.

The secretary-general expressed confidence that “65 per cent of Pakistanis that are under the age of 30 will not just be the leaders of tomorrow but they will help us co-create the future from today”.