September 28, 2018 (MLN): Pakistan and Kuwait have failed to reach a consensus over the dispute of visa restrictions on Pakistani Nationals, on their fourth meeting of the Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC), which ended in Islamabad on Thursday, 27th September.
Finance Minister Asad Umar stressed the need for lifting visa restrictions on Pakistani nationals as it has become a major obstacle hindering bilateral trade and economic relations between the two countries.
According to officials in the Ministry of Finance, the Kuwaiti delegation assured to consider some practical measures to lift the restrictions on business visa requests only and notify Pakistan regarding it by the end of the month. Nevertheless, there were no clear commitments to remove the restrictions on all types of visas.
Pakistani side expressed serious concern over the incessant visa restrictions since 2011 as Kuwait was once among the main destinations for expatriate Pakistanis.
However, both the sides agreed to form a working group that would look into labour market requirements of Kuwait aimed at receiving skilled workforce from Pakistan.
Pakistan offered Kuwait the benefit of a trained workforce in the fields of agriculture, automobile, construction, health, and textile, the officials said.
Islamabad urged the oil-rich Gulf Arab nation to consent to a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the recruitment of Pakistani professionals through the public sector, to which the Kuwaiti delegation promised a response in the next two months.
The issue of oil supply on deferred payment was not brought on the table. Getting oil on credit from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are among the options Pakistan is considering to resolve external-sector problems.
Both sides also discussed bilateral economic and trade relations, noting that the current level of bilateral trade did not justify its full potential. The Kuwaiti side expressed its interest in enhancing shipping service between Gwadar and Kuwaiti ports.
Pakistan invited Kuwaiti investors to invest in the Special Economic Zones (SEZs), Gwadar Port Free Zone and establish country-specific free zones to improve bilateral investment. The JMC emphasized the need for early implementation of the agreement for the Encouragement and Protection of Investment, which was signed seven years ago but had not yet been implemented.
Furthermore, Pakistani authorities expressed the desire to increase agricultural goods and textile exports and to sign an agreement with Kuwait’s private sector to increase rice exports. However, visa restrictions remained the key bottleneck.
The commission agreed to implement provisions of the Protocol of Cooperation signed 17 years ago to strengthen relations between chambers of commerce of both the countries. However, no major milestone could be achieved.
Pakistan also suggested the setting up of Pak-Kuwait Joint Business Council and Joint Working Group on trade and investment between the two countries. However, the future roadmap was left to be decided through diplomatic channels.
Pakistan sought Kuwait’s help for early finalisation of a free trade agreement between the Gulf Cooperation Council and Pakistan. Both the sides also discussed the possibility of making joint investments in the fisheries sector of Pakistan.
For enhancing banking cooperation, the joint commission underscored the need for opening banking channels between the two countries. Pakistan urged Kuwait to explore the possibility of signing a MoU between central banks of both countries.
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