ISLAMABAD: Brazilian Ambassador to Pakistan Olyntho Vieira, on Sunday said that Brazil and Pakistan were collaborating to expand trade volume between the two nations.
In an interview with APP, he stressed the need for expanding businesses from both the countries to look more thoroughly into the prospect of investments, joint ventures or partnerships in sectors like textiles and meat processing.
The envoy said that Brazil and Pakistan were regional giants with similar populations, common positions in many issues of the international agenda and sharing challenges such as poverty and the effects of climate change, which the two countries could fight jointly.
He mentioned these elements as the basis for the amicable and fruitful 74-year-long diplomatic relationship between both the countries, which resulted in warm and friendly relations.
Brazil was the first nation in South America to recognize Pakistan, in 1948, and to establish an Embassy in Pakistan’s former capital Karachi, 70 years ago. Since that time, interactions between the corresponding governments and civil groups have intensified and increased in frequency.
The ambassador there was much potential existed which should be harnessed between the two countries.
He claimed that Brazil and Pakistan’s cooperation in the sphere of defence had been one of the most promising areas, with constant exchange of high-level visits and personnel for military courses.
The ambassador in response to a query regarding trade between Brazil and Pakistan said it had been on an upward trajectory since 2018, uninterrupted even in pandemic times.
After reaching US$ 1 billion in 2020, he continued, “bilateral trade reached, according to our [Brazilian] numbers, US$ 1.3 billion at the end of 2021, up further 24.9% from the previous year.”
“Pakistan is already one of the top 40 export markets for Brazil and one of the top 6 markets for Brazilian soybeans, which are known worldwide for their quality and high sanitary standards” he remarked.
Cotton is Brazil’s second-most important export to Pakistan which used in the textile industry, he added.
According to Asian Development Bank (ADB), in 2020, Brazil was the third-largest supplier of materials used in Pakistani exports, making up a value chain that connected the two nations, he observed.
Olyntho Vieira, was of the opinion that even with these encouraging improvements, several troubling aspects of Brazil-Pakistan bilateral relations could not be ignored.
First, it has a significant dollar imbalance towards Brazil (which imports less that US$ 100 million from Pakistan); second, it is largely concentrated in two products—the aforementioned cotton and soybeans, which account for more than 80% of Brazilian exports to Pakistan; third, and most importantly, the trade is currently performing much below potential.
“Overcoming distance to create chances that concur to the economic development of the two countries and the well-being of the two peoples is the challenge put out to the respective governments and business groups”, he said.
Brazil was able to take 19% of the grains market thanks to the advanced technology created by the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) for the cultivation of new and more resilient crops that survive in harsh environments, he added.
This technology is willingly shared with developing nations that have a technical cooperation agreement with Brazil, helping to advance agriculture and lessen starvation. Currently, Brazilian universities and Pakistani sugarcane growers are working together to create a variety that is ideal for the climate of Pakistan.
“The potential for this field is enormous”, he said.
In response to a question about improving people-to-people contacts between the two countries, particularly in the education sector, the ambassador replied that this was a typically disregarded aspect of relations between the two countries.
”The more our populations get in contact and know each other, the more opportunities arise for trade and cooperation,” he added.
He noted that many Pakistani students were currently taking their Master and Doctorate courses in Brazil, and that the Embassy was also looking into establishing a Brazilian directorate in a prestigious Pakistani university, so that Pakistani students could learn about Brazilian culture and improve their Portuguese’s skills in order to more easily apply for post-graduate courses in Brazil
The ambassador stated that he wanted to see more Pakistanis travel to Brazil and vice versa since Pakistan was a fascinating location and one of the best kept secrets for visitors and adventurers; all this would assist strengthen and enhancing our cooperation.
