ISLAMABAD, Jun 25 (APP):Hundreds of Malaysians had a firsthand experience of the taste, succulence and aroma of the famous Pakistani mangoes as they converged on a hotel in Kuala Lumpur to feast on a wide spread of mango delights made out of freshly-arrived mangoes from the southern province of Sindh.

According to a message received here from Pakistan's High Commission in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia today, the occasion was provided by the Sindh Mango Festival arranged in the Malaysian capital by the Sindh Board of Investment (SBI) in collaboration with Agriculture Department (GoS), Pakistan Fruits and Vegetable Exporters Association and Progressive Growers of Sindh.

The festival featured a display of all popular Sindh mangoes such as Sindhri, Began Pali, Chaunsa, Langra, Anwar Retaul, Saroli, Dasehri, Sunehra and Fajhri.

Chairman SBI, Zubair Motiwala who was chief guest on the occasion, watched with interest and excitement as keen food lovers and men and women of Asian descent descended on the hotel to treat themselves to a wide spread of mango delicacies, including mango ice cream, mango soufflé, mango mousse, mango trifle, mango tart, mango pudding, fresh fruit platter and mango cake.

Briefing the guests and visitors later, Mr. Motiwala said the mango festival in Kuala Lumpur was coming on the heels of a similar and successfully arranged festival in Dubai where various varieties of Sindh mangoes were showcased at major super stores to the delight of fruit lovers who bought away over 500 tonnes of the juicy fruit in just two weeks.

“We are hoping to have a similar response here and from here we go to Singapore which also boasts of a sizable segment of population with taste buds addicted to our mangoes,” he said.

He invited the Malaysian importers and businessmen to look at the vast agriculture sector in Pakistan where endless opportunities awaited them for joint ventures and business matchmaking's.

“We are home to more than 80 globally-renowned multinationals which are successfully operating and getting healthy returns on their businesses and it is time the Malaysian companies followed the suit and tapped investment opportunities in various sectors, particularly in agriculture, energy, infrastructure, transport & communication, textile, mining & gem and IT & telecommunication,” he added.

Earlier, Pakistan High Commissioner to Kuala Lumpur Shahid Kiani said the mango festival in Kuala Lumpur was a welcome event which would help trigger a greater demand for the Pakistani mangoes already gaining popularity locally because of their fine quality and superior taste.

“I hope the mango festival will help us promote mangoes export, enhance market share and develop vital linkages with importers and retailers to attain volume and bulk quantity orders from them,” he said.

Mr. Kiani said the Pakistan High Commission had in consultation with the SBI also arranged a roundtable conference on the sidelines of the mango festival to highlight business and investment opportunities in the Sindh province and elsewhere in Pakistan.

Some 30 entrepreneurs and captains of various industries in Malaysia would attend the roundable to deliberate upon measures to enhance collaboration in various sectors.

Besides the roundtable, the SBI delegation would also use the visit to launch mangoes at various outlets of the Malaysian hypermarket besides visiting the Halal Hub Zone in Pulau Indah in the Klang region for networking and business matchmakings.