KARACHI: Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has called upon the world to move away from its stereotypical image and look towards Pakistan as a “promising emerging market” full of opportunities.

The foreign minister met Singapore President Halimah Yacob and his counterpart Dr Vivian Balakrishnan during his visit to the country on Friday.Mr Bhutto-Zardari remarked that online trading and e-commerce activities were on the rise in Pakistan and Asian countries that outsource IT and financial services and can benefit from the young population.

He said Pakistan was keen to forge closer cooperation with Southeast Asia’s digital economy and enhance ties with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), especially in the technical and vocational education sector.

“Some recent initiatives of Asean are of great interest to Pakistan which we believe are bound to unlock immense trade and investment opportunities for emerging economies including Pakistan,” he said in the interview.