The D-8 Secretary-General paid his maiden visit to Pakistan in October, 2018. During the visit, he met with the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, H.E. Mr. Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi; the Foreign Secretary, H.E Ms. Tehmina Janjua; the D-8 Commissioner, Mr. Ata ul Munim Shahid; the Director General for Economic Coordination and Organization for Islamic Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Haroon Sharif; Minister of State / Chairman Board of Investment of Pakistan, H.E Mr. Muhammad Hammad Azhar; Minister of State for Revenue and the President of the Federal Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Pakistan, Mr. Ghazanfar Bilour.

The Secretary-General congratulated the new Government of Pakistan and conveyed his wishes for its success. During the meetings, the discussions were held in positive and constructive manner. The Secretary-General explained the new approach and the initiatives that he has introduced and updated the dignitaries on the implementation of the decisions of the 9th D-8 Summit and informed them on the current activities of the Organization. Pakistan warmly welcomed all the new initiatives and gave its full support to the Secretary-General for their implementation and assured the Secretary-General of their full commitment to the Organization.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs stressed the need for the Organization to finalize the agreed instruments such as D-8PTA, D-8 Visa and Customs agreement as soon as possible in order to be able to reach our desired goals. He also informed that under the leadership of the Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, H E. Mr. Imran Khan, the government is fully committed to giving full support to the D-8 organization for Economic Cooperation.

On her part, the Foreign Secretary appreciated the Secretary-General’s efforts and vision and assured him of her full support. She also mentioned that after 21 years of establishment, we should move forward and implement all our agreed instruments. She shared the views of the Secretary-General on empowering the Private Sector of the Member States and welcomed the finalization of the Statue of the D-8 Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

The Minister of State and the Chairman of the Board of Investment of Pakistan, Mr. Haroon Sharif informed the Secretary-General regarding the new approach of the Government of Pakistan. He said that Pakistan is open for investment to the world now and the government will provide full support and facilities to all the investors from the D-8 Member States and he also welcomed investment and technology transfer proposals from the Member States. The Secretary-General apprised him on the ongoing activities of the Organization. He praised the efforts of the Secretary-General and gave his full support to the successful implementation of the agenda of the Secretary-General.

The Minister of State of Revenue, H.E Mr. Hammad Azhar, warmly welcomes the Secretary-General to his Office in Islamabad. During discussions, he briefed the Secretary-General regarding Pakistan’s new approach to woo investors from the all over the world and specially from the D-8 Member States and told him that they are in the process of making the rules and regulations of doing business in Pakistan more flexible. He also informed that Pakistan is launching mega projects for Investment and D-8 Member States will be encouraged to participate in them. The Secretary-General briefed him about the new approach of establishing the direct contact with the Stake holders and asked his help for the newly introduced initiatives such as D-8 Payment Card and D-8 Clearing House.The Honorable Minister welcomes the Secretary-Generals idea of building the new eco system and assured his full support in the implementation of his initiatives.

The Secretary-General also met with the President of the Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Pakistan, Mr. Ghazanfar Bilour along with his team. The president hosted the Secretary-General to lunch followed by the brain storming session on how to make the D-8 Chambers of Commerce and Industry (D-8CCI) forum more effective and beneficial. He assured the Secretary-General of Pakistan’s commitment to the D-8 and informed the Secretary-General that they want to actively participate in the activities of the D-8 CCI. To this end, he requested the Secretary-General’s action on the implementation of the agreed instruments of D-8, especially the D-8 Visa Agreement. He stressed that the Member States should implement the Visa agreement in its true spirit as this will ultimately help to increase the share of the intra trade among Member States. At this juncture, the Secretary-General appreciated the positives gestures of the President towards the Organization and assured of his commitment to take the necessary step to get the Member States to implement the agreed D-8 Instruments.