FIVE AGREEMENTS BEING SIGNED DURING PRESIDENT OF KAZAKHSTAN's VISIT TO PAKISTAN ON MONDAY

Islamabad, December 07, 2003

A bilateral Investment Treaty and four other agreements being signed between the Governments of Pakistan and Kazakhstan during the two-day official visit of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Mr. Nursultan Nazarbayev who is arriving Pakistan on Monday December 8, 2003. The Federal Minister for Privatisation & Investment Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh will sign Investment Treaty on behalf of the Government of Pakistan, while the Kazakh Minister for Trade & Industry Mr. Abllbek Jaxybekov will sign on behalf of his country in the presence of the President General Pervez Musharraf and the President Nursultan Nazarbayev at Aiwan-e-Sadar.

In addition to the investment treaty four other agreements will also be signed among the respective Ministers and the heads of the organizations of both the countries on development of academic cooperation between National University of Modern Languages and the Oblai Khan University, cooperation in the sphere of environment, agreement between the State Bank of Pakistan and the National Bank of Kazakhstan on conditions for opening subsidiary Banks and cooperation in the area of Banking Supervision and on the establishment of bilateral relations in the field of urban economic management.

The visiting distinguished guest, the Kazakh President Mr. Nursultan Nazarbayev will also attend a Business Forum on 9th of December (Tuesday) to which he is bringing 30 top businessmen from Kazakhstan. Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh will host this function on December 9,2003. The Forum will also launch President Mr. Nursultan Nazarbayev's book "Epicenter of Peace". The distinguished guest will also address the representatives of Pakistani Businessmen.

Pakistan and Kazakhstan have set up Joint Ministerial/ Economic Commission, which first met in January 1993. So far four meetings of JMC had taken place since its inception. A quadripartite Agreement on Traffic in transit between Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and China was signed in Islamabad on November 24, 1998. The implementation rules of this agreement were finalized and signed at a ministerial level meeting of signatory countries on November 24, 1998.

The Kazakh delegation includes the Kazakh Ministers for Foreign Affairs Mr. Kassymzhomart Tokaev, Education & Science Mr. Zhaksybek Kulekeyev, Trade & Industry Mr. Abllbek Jaxybekov, Chairman National Bank of Kazakhstan, Mayor of Astama, Capital of Kazakhstan and thirty businessmen who will interact with the Pakistani businessmen for prospective joint ventures in the petroleum, agriculture, fisheries, electronic, mining, textiles, metal fabrication, light engineering etc.