Shillong, July 25: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Wednesday stressed on the need to establish collaborative trade links with South East Asian countries in order to tap the huge potential in Meghalaya and the whole North Eastern Region (NER).
The Chief Minister who attended the inaugural ceremony of the 5th Act East Business Show organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce in association with the Ministry of DoNER, North Eastern Council and the Meghalaya Commerce and Industries department here, also emphasized that economic activities should be encouraged with balance approach which will not affect the ecology and the overall impact on the environment.
“We need the economy to grow but it should never be at the cost of the environment. We cannot stop all effects, but we can minimize effects to a large extent by taking simple steps and framing effective policies†The Chief Minister said.
Referring to the huge potential that Meghalaya and the North Eastern Region has for the development of bamboo and bamboo-based industries, Conrad also called for creating opportunities for economic growth in this sector.
The Chief Minister also emphasised the need to have collaborative efforts with countries like Taiwan, being market leaders in bamboo-based industries as Taiwan got one of the best technologies and far ahead compared to the rest of the nations globally in bamboo sector.
“The North East and country like Taiwan can play a massive role to revolutionize the entire bamboo sector and create huge opportunities for our people.†Conrad said.
He also stated the need to have mutually beneficial tie ups with neighbouring countries in order to boost the food processing sector.
The Chief Minister also spoke about the Jackfruit Mission launched a few weeks back in the State and the huge demand for this fruit in countries like Vietnam which is one of the leading country in the processing of jackfruit.
“Meghalaya can play a big role to meet the shortfall of supply in these countries which is a huge economic opportunity for usâ€, he said.
The Chief Minister also urged the Indian Chamber of Commerce to hold Business Meets such as the ongoing Business Show in different States of the NE region in order to give boost to trade and commerce and economic activity in the region.
