Islamabad : The Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ICCI) in collaboration with the Centaurus Mall, Islamabad organized a mega show of automobile brands in the open parking of Centaurus to highlight the potential of the automobile sector for economic revival of the country. All major local and international auto brands like cars, SUVs, jeeps, heavy bikes, motorcycles including Toyota, Honda, Isuzu, Benelli, Aprilia, Changan Alsvin, Sigma, antique, vintage and exotic vehicles etc. were displayed for the interest of the visitors. Exclusive auto brands including Lamborghini, Ferrari, BMW, Range Rover, Audi, Mercedes were also on display. This was the first of its kind auto show organized by the ICCI to cater to the needs of corporate and consumers markets. The auto show was free of cost while food stalls, and refreshment counters were also arranged for the convenience of the participants. At the conclusion, a musical concert was held for the entertainment of the people.
Syed Zulfiqar Abbas Bukhari (Zulfi Bukhari) Special Assistant to PM on Overseas Pakistanis and HRD inaugurated the auto show as Chief Guest. Ali Nawaz Awan, Special Assistant to the PM on CDA Affairs was also present at the occasion. Fatma Azim Senior Vice President, Abdul Rehman Khan Vice President ICCI, Mian Akram Farid Chairman Founder Group and a great number of business community attended the auto show. A large number of people from all walks of life including some foreign nationals turned up to attend the auto show and they took keen interest in various types of auto brands.
Speaking at the occasion, Zulfi Bukhari SAPM on Overseas Pakistanis & HRD and Ali Nawaz Awan SAPM on CDA Affairs appreciated the initiative of ICCI for organizing an impressive automobile show in collaboration with the Centaurus Mall. They said that the Covid-19 pandemic has badly affected business activities across the world including Pakistan and after the reduction in coronavirus cases, organizing such events was very important to revive and boost the economy. They said that with the improvement of Covid-19 pandemic situation, the government would encourage more such initiatives as Pakistan needed to organize trade fairs and exhibitions on a regular basis to boost its trade & exports and stabilize its economy.
Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ICCI) in his welcome address said that the automobile sector was playing a vital role in the development of our economy in terms of revenue generation, foreign exchange, employment creation, and technology transfer, therefore, there was a great need to further promote it to steer the country out of current challenges. He said that the automobile sector was contributing nearly Rs.50 billion to the national exchequer, providing employment to around 3.5 million people besides playing a key role in the growth of the vendor industry and stressed further supporting this sector would help in creating more jobs, providing better auto solutions to people and generating additional tax revenue. He said that the government should focus on promoting the indigenous automobile industry so that instead of importing most of the vehicles and spare parts, all auto brands could be manufactured in the country. He said that for this purpose, the government should announce special tax incentives to attract maximum local and foreign investors in this important sector. He said that the purpose of organizing a mega auto show in Islamabad was to showcase the potential of the automobile sector and enable the general public of the region to find automobile brands of their choice at one location. He assured that the ICCI would continue to organize more expos/exhibitions in the coming months to highlight the potential of various sectors of our economy and generate more economic activities.