ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Defence Syed Naveed Qamar Tuesday underlined that trade among the South Asian countries could help alleviate poverty in the region for which people-to-people contact was vital, Geo News reported.
"We need to look into deeper integration in the region whereby not just the merchandise but our people particularly youth and communities can interact with each," he said while speaking at a conference here at a local hotel.
The moot “Sustainable Development in South Asia: Shaping the Future” was organized by Sustainable Development Policy
Institution (SDPI).
“This is the way it used to be some three centuries back and it is time now that we should learn from our histories where mutual respect and honor allowed us to co-exist and prosper”, said the defence minister.
The minister said that today South Asia was the least connected
region in the world and it connectivity indicators were even poorer
than Sub-Saharan Africa.
"If we continue to be as distant as we are today, our children may never be able to interact, talk, meet and play with their children in the neighborhoods. Such a lost opportunity will be synonymous to a youth stolen in the name of history's baggage," he added.
He said Pakistan was undertaking a foreign policy in the new emerging realities in the best interest of the people of Pakistan and the development and prosperity in the region.
"We value our relationship with the powers in Asia. Pakistan has played an active role in SAARC for the formalization of the processes towards setting up food bank and supporting other regional arrangements including South Asia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA)."
He also added that Pakistan’s terms with India were on the mend and improving fast.
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