The Trade Office at the Embassy of Pakistan in the Hague, organized an informative seminar on Massive Trade Opportunities in Pakistan in the wake of GSP Plus(GSP+) on 14th of January, 2015 at the Hilton Hotel , Zeestraat 35, The Hague.
It is pertinent to mention that Pakistan has become an attractive market for Dutch companies after being awarded the GSP+ status by the European Union. The EU gave the Generalized System of Preference plus (GSP+) facility to Pakistan which came into effect from 1st January 2014. Under the scheme 6269 products from Pakistan now have duty free access to EU markets including Netherlands.
The seminar was arranged by the Embassy of Pakistan’s Trade Office to highlight the massive trade opportunities for both Dutch and Pakistani companies and to give information to Dutch companies about the steps taken by all stake holders including the Government of Pakistan, Dutch Government, and Private sector to maximize the benefits of GSP+.
The seminar also endeavored to highlight the experiences of companies that already have established businesses in Pakistan. Big buying chain HEMA and Small Medium Enterprise shared their experiences of doing Business with Pakistan.
The seminar was preceded by Exhibition of Pakistani products exhibited by HEMA, Muta Sports, Arma Leder, Europell, and Royal Textiles. The participants showed keen interest in the exhibition since it shed light in the flesh on how fruitful business in Pakistan can be. After seminar dinner was served which consisted of popular Pakistani cuisine.
The Seminar was presided by H.E Ambassador of Pakistan, His Excellency Mr Moazzam Ahmad Khan and the Guest of Honor was Mr. Simon Smits, Vice Minister of International Trade at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Netherlands. Mr. Max Timmerman, Managing Director of CBI also attended the seminar. Presentations were made by Hema, Modint, Muta Sports, CBI, PUM and Social and Economic Council of the Netherlands (SER).
The event was a great success and around 100 Dutch companies, Trade Associations, Diplomats and representatives from Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs participated in the seminar. Participants lauded the efforts of the Trade Office, Embassy of Pakistan for arranging such an informative and educational seminar and exhibition.
