The Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) plans to take a delegation of prominent Pakistani businessmen to Dominican Republic in June with the objective of strengthening and developing economic relations with the Caribbean sea island nation, said a statement. The visit comes amidst the warming up of the bilateral relations between Pakistan and the Caribbean nation brought about by recent initiatives of the Dominican Government, Dominican Republic Honorary Consul in Lahore Ms. Doris Montero told LCCI members. She said that the Dominican Republic was eager for globalization and diversification of its diplomatic and commercial relations with Africa, the Middle East and South Asia, adding that the friendly policies were being adopted to promote trade liberalization and economic integration with this region. Ms Montero said that the Pakistani delegation was expected to receive a warm welcome in the Dominican business circles, as it will be the first such team from Pakistan to visit the DR. The diplomat said that the event is being organized with the support of the Embassy of the Dominican Republic in India, which is closely collaborating in the preparation of the agenda, identifying potential contacts and travel logistics. The delegates represent various trades and industries sectors, which have the highest import bills and which are areas that exporters, importers and investors commonly seek when interested in conducting business in DR; the match thus guaranteeing a successful and interesting encounter between Dominican importers and the Pakistani businessmen. The Dominican Republic, an island between Cuba and Puerto Rico with a population of 9 million, is one of the largest importers among the 21 countries of the Central American and Caribbean region with imports amounting to 11 billion dollars in 2006. Ms Montero said that the Dominican market, virtually unexplored by the businessmen of South East Asia, had undergone substantial structural and functioning changes in recent years offering now multiple opportunities for business and investment. She said that the Caribbean nation had become an ideal location for its strategic geographic position, which allows an easy access to the markets of the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean, and for its growing economy -projected at 11% for 2007.
