Speech of Salik Hussain, Honorary Consul General of Kingdom of Cambodia at inaugural ceremony of Consulate in Lahore
Distinguished Guests and my colleagues,
I would like to welcome you all to the inauguration ceremony of the honorary consulate of the Kingdom of Cambodia here in Lahore.
I am grateful for Mr. Mushahid Hussain for his opening remarks has already explained the broader context of Pakistan relations with Cambodia and its role in the region.
I would like to take this opportunity to explain some of the key aspects of Cambodia which may be interest for all of you since it is the first such opportunity to introduce Cambodia in Pakistan.
Cambodia-officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is located in the southern portion of the Indo-China peninsula in South East Asia.
It spans over an area of 181,035 sq. km, of which 20% is agricultural land and about 61% is covered by forests. It has a population of over 14.8 million, mainly following Buddhism with about 6% of the population comprising mainly of Muslims and Christians.
Cambodia has made significant progress towards prosperity and development since the 1990’s. There is a multi party political system in the country; taking vigorous efforts to develop and strengthen its democratic institutions, transforming it to a market driven and open economy.
Since then the country had one of the best economic records in Asia with economic growth growing on average of 6% per year over the past 10 years.
Their strength in the textile industry, agriculture sector, construction, garments, and tourism sectors has led to foreign direct and indirect investments and International trade.
The country's garment and tourism industries have speedily expanded from a very low base; and physical infrastructures are undergoing rapid rehabilitation and expansion.
On top of all this drive, oil and natural gas deposits were discovered in 2005 beneath Cambodia’s territorial waters.
Once commercial extraction begins from next year, the oil revenues could profoundly push forth the economy of Cambodia, taking it to new heights.
Here I must make a special note of mentioning the efforts of Mr. Mushahid Hussain, who is the Secretary General of the Pakistan Muslim League.
He is also the secretary general of an Asia-Wide organization of political parties and civil society organization through which he has established Pakistan’s positive and strong relations with other Asian countries located in the region.
He made every effort in this capacity to initiate amicable and strong diplomatic relations with the Kingdom of Cambodia.
I feel profoundly honored to have been selected by Cambodia’s Government to represent their nation in my country, Pakistan.
Honourable guests,
Cambodia has a special relevance for Pakistan in three contexts. First Cambodia has already gone through turmoil and turbulence in the context of Vietnam War 30 years ago, similar to our own experiences with reference to Afghanistan and after the turmoil and killings of conflict, which resulted in over 2 million deaths, Cambodia has embarked on a successful path of peace, reconciliation and progress.
The second context which is relevant to Pakistan is that Cambodia is part of ASEAN – Association of South East Asian Nations, which includes one of the world’s fastest and most promising economic growth regions in the world today, along with China. The 21st century is an Asian century, and the pillars of this rise of Asia would be the region where Cambodia is located.
The third context is that since Cambodia is primarily a Buddhist country, it is important to note that Pakistan contains one of the most historical heritages of Buddhism in such places as Taxila and Takhtbhai.
Cambodia is a rapidly changing society that presents many opportunities for the potential global investors, with tourism being one of them.
I shall be focusing on establishing bilateral tourism opportunities along with new ventures in trade and education between the two nations.
A business friendly government in a country that lies at the heart of the developing region, Cambodia has much to offer to investors ready to brave the challenges that a developing economy offers.
It is a country of large markets, promising hard working labour, and a liberal economy, making it all the more attractive to potential investors. Insha Allah, we will soon establish a Pakistan-Cambodia Business Council.
I aspire to see both countries rise and grow to great economic fronts. I hope this consulate would be a milestone in achieving this and much more. I thank you all for being a part of what would be a start of official diplomatic relationship between the two great nations.
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