By HE Shujjat Ali Rathore
Spain and Pakistan have a history of warm and cordial relations marked by shared perceptions on a broad range of regional and international issues. At present, more than 100,000 members of the Pakistani diaspora reside in Spain. This, coupled with the vast political, trade and tourism ties, makes Spain one of Pakistan’s oldest and increasingly important partners.
The year 2021 marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Kingdom of Spain and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Most recently, we commemorated this through a musical performance “Soniche´” (fusion of jazz, flamenco and Pakistani music) that was organized in August 2021 in collaboration with Casa Asia (Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs’division for cultural cooperation with Asia-Pacific region). Two renowned Pakistani musicians along with three Spanish artists gave a mesmerizing performance, promoting Pakistan’s culture and music.
This year also marks the first ever high-level visit from Spain to Pakistan in the last seven decades of our bilateral relations. Following the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan, the Spanish Foreign Minister visited Islamabad on 10th September. Due to our continuous engagements with the host government, there is now an active realization at the European Union (EU) that the socio-economic situation in Afghanistan is rapidly deteriorating and there is a dire need to provide direct support to the Afghan population to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe in the country and the region. Visible shift in the EU’s policy regarding the regional security and migration management is evident from the Afghan support package worth €1 billion that was recently announced by the European Commission.
As a result of the Spanish FM’s visit and our recent interaction with the Spanish leadership, it has been agreed to augment mutual cooperation in the defense sector and to ensure more frequent exchange of parliamentary delegations. An eleven-member parliamentary delegation led by the Speaker of National Assembly of Pakistan is scheduled to visit Madrid during the last week of November to attend 142nd Session of Inter-Parliamentary Union.
In addition to the political exchanges, bilateral relations between Pakistan and Spain are being diversified with an increased focus on trade and investment as Spain is Pakistan 3rd largest trading partner in the EU with an annual bilateral trade volume of more than $ 1.3 billion- and growing. The surge in trade volume is a testament to our successful efforts to harness the ‘GSP Plus’ arrangement– a preferential tariff system given by EU to developing countries which provides tariff reduction on various products. Pakistan is thankful for and expects Spain’s continuous support for the status.
More diversification is also being led through Pakistan’s participation in key trade fairs and exhibitions in Spain across a wide variety of sectors, helping establish a dialogue between the Pakistani and Spanish business community leading to further growth of bilateral trade. Most recently, a Pakistani delegation from the ICT sector participated in Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona – one of the world’s most significant exhibitions for the mobile communication industry. Despite the uncertainty surrounding international travel, we facilitated the participation of Pakistani IT firms in the 2021 Edition of MWC, in collaboration with Pakistan Export Software Board (PSEB). Pakistani companies participated in conferences and seminars conducted by top industry influencers, and built business relationships with international IT firms. This interaction will lead to increased knowledge about Pakistani ICT Sector in Spain and contribute to enhance IT services exports to Spain and to the European continent.
When talking about diversification and trade, Pakistan also has the potential to become self-sufficient in edible oil by utilizing its water scarce areas for the plantation and cultivation of olive trees. As part of the government policy aimed at accelerating economic development, Pakistan’s Embassy in Madrid is extending its full support in the national effort to attain self-sufficiency and food security and to diversify our export base. While exploring avenues for collaboration in the olive sector, Madrid Mission has established close ties with the International Olive Council (IOC) – the world’s only international intergovernmental organization in the field of olive oil, working under the auspices of the United Nations. IOC has showed willingness to offer technical assistance/collaboration to the Government of Pakistan. An official delegation headed by IOC’s Executive Director, Mr. Abdelatif Ghedira, will be visiting Pakistan from 21st October to 25th October, 2021 to explore Pakistan’s olive sector program and to meet officials from this olive sector, likely leading to further strengthening of relations between Pakistan and IOC.
Lastly, tourism has increasingly become a priority area given Pakistan’s great potential with its rich culture, history and geographical diversity. With Spain being a top destination for Pakistanis and also the 2nd most visited country in the world in 2019 with 84 million international tourists and tourism sector, accounting for 12.4% of Spain’s GDP, Pakistan has much to learn from Spanish expertise in the tourism sector. In this regard, efforts are under way in collaboration with Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) to arrange a delegation of Pakistani tourism sector companies to participate in FITUR – the world’s 2nd major trade fair in the tourism sector. Pakistan’s participation in FITUR scheduled to be held in Madrid in January 2022 will help to recover tourism sector in the post-COVID era in Pakistan and to highlight Pakistan’s soft image in Spain. We are also engaging with the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)-the United Nations specialized agency entrusted with the promotion of responsible and sustainable tourism– headquartered in Madrid, to acquire technical assistance to uplift of our tourism sector.
Regarding avenues of future cooperation between Pakistan and Spain, numerous economic complementarities exist between the two countries. While Spain is recognized world over for its entrepreneurial skills in areas of design, technology and innovation; Pakistan is blessed with abundance of natural resources, skillful and educated young work force, affordable labour and an advantageous geostrategic location. Spain offers an ideal opportunity for those Pakistani companies which intend to target the international market to sell their products and services. Establishing business offices in Spain can help tap not only the Spanish and European market, but also reach the Latin American markets strongly linked with Spain.
At the same time, Pakistan, with one of the most liberal investment regimes in the region, offers immense opportunities as a reliable trade partner. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and its related projects can open up new avenues of investments in Pakistan in sectors ranging from tourism to renewable energy to housing and construction.
Such countless and mutually-beneficial opportunities has led us to sow a friendship in Europe – a true partnership through which Pakistan can lead on future collaboration and innovation in the years to come.
The writer is a seasoned diplomat and Pakistan’s ambassador to Spain
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