Bosnian ambassador to Pakistan Dr Nedim Makarevic said in Islamabad that Bosnia could become a gateway to Pakistani textile, sports and surgical instruments for their export to Europe to the benefit of two countries.
Bosnia Herzegovina offers you a gateway to the European Union, he told APP in an interview in Islamabad. He said that Bosnia was considered a post-war country so it did not have any quotas for its export of finished products, which could be exported to Europe and the US Bosnia did not pay an export tax on its products or it is very minimal, he said. He said that Germany was exporting Pakistani surgical instruments, gives it a finishing touch with chrome or even without that, it re-exported to Bosnia.
Here is a great opportunity for Pakistani entrepreneurs in surgical instruments to set up their unit in Bosnia, label and export it to rest of Europe without facing any quota bars on the produce. He urged the Pakistani private sector to open up and establish producing facilities of their items in Bosnia which can offer them a gateway to Europe and (he also claimed that) the margin of profit is quite attractive as well. He said that Pakistani businessmen who are producing surgical instruments, sports wears or textiles, need to establish facilities in Bosnia to export their half-finished products to Bosnia, finish these products in Bosnia, and then sky is the limit, said the Bosnia ambassador.
Questioned whether by doing that, Pakistani businessmen would not be reducing their margin of profit, Dr Nedim said that despite being reduced, the profit would still be lucrative for them. Giving an example, he said that 1 Kg of mango was $6 in Bosnia, while 1 kg mango here is $1. So even if they paid triple the price on transportation of mangoes from Karachi to Bosnia, the margin would still be double. Similarly Pakistani Jeans, sports wears are needed in Bosnia as it was a football nation. Similarly cloth sheets, towels, pillows and Pakistani Jeans can offer good profit.
Talking of the tourism industry, he said that Bosnia received 1 million tourists(per annum) hence there is a great potential for opening good hotels and Pakistani businessmen already doing roaring business in the sector could capitalise on it for expanding commercial ties between two countries.
“Pakistani businessmen need to be aggressive in their approach and should not shy of taking risk. There is a huge opportunity in Bosnia if they establish producing units of textile, sports goods and textile the fields Pakistanis have years of experience and are already in the market, he said.
