New visa regime with Brazil

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Brazil have agreed on a new visa regime that will allow the business communities of both sides to obtain five-year multiple-entry visas. The move is expected to increase economic and trade relations between the two countries. The announcement of new visa regime was made after the “exchange of notes” on Wednesday between Ambassador of Brazil to Pakistan, Alfredo Leoni, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Additional Secretary for Americas, Naghmana Hashmi. “Not only Brazilian industrial sector is booming, but also the private equity, telecommunications, tourism, civil construction and biotechnology sectors are offering great revenues for investors,” he said. “Pakistanis can also be a part of this movement, and profit from the Brazilian development.” Alfredo Leoni also mentioned the potential markets for the bilateral trade. He said that poultry meat, agricultural machinery, orange juice, tea, spices, coffee derived products, auto parts, textiles and garments, leather goods, marble and granites, sports gear; fans and wood handicraft. “I feel that the best option for the business community of Brazil and Pakistan could be to work together in different areas, through joint-ventures and joint-research, such as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, poultry production, telecommunications and bio-energy.”The trade between the two countries reached to $285 million in 2012, with Pakistan’s exports to Brazil reaching $92m in 2012 to $44m in 2009, a rise of more than 100 per cent. The major Pakistani exports to Brazil include textile, surgical items, soccer balls, manicure instruments, etc, while the main Brazilian imports into Pakistan are cotton, fuel pumps, plastic, iron and steel, tobacco, pulp, etc. With the increasing business and social ties between both countries, the activities of the Brazilian Embassy in country have also enhanced. Ambassador Leoni was instrumental in launching of a separate space in library of Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, with more than 300 books about Brazil and a photo exhibition was also held in the federal capital about Islam and the Muslims in the South American country.