MULTAN: A delegation of the trainee officers along with faculty members, led by Samina Intizar, chief instructor at the National Institute of Management (NIM), visited the Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) for an interaction with the local business community. The officers, belonging to the various departments of the federal and provincial governments, were nominated for the 26th Mid-Career Management Course (MCMC). Addressing the officers, president Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) Malik Asrar Ahmed Awan said that the civil service was one of the agents of development in any country and civil officers should fully cooperate with the private sector for the economic revival of the country. He said that the civil officers should play an active role in resolving the issues of business community so that the private sector could grow at its real potential. He further said that the public-private partnership was the best approach to take the country forward for sustainable economic development and civil officers should partner with the private sector in steering the country out of the current challenges. Senior vice president MCCI Begum Romana Tanvir Sheikh threw light on the geographical significance of Multan and said that the South Punjab produced almost 80 percent of the total production of cotton, 40 percent of total wheat production. She further said that the South Punjab produced the best quality mangoes in the world. She said that there was a lack of infra-structure which demoralizes the new investors. Former president MCCI Khawaja Muhammad Usman and Major Retired Tariq Khan briefed the visitors about the history of Multan and said that it was one of the most ancient cities of this region. Samina Intizar said that the purpose of bringing the trainee officers to MCCI was to sensitize them about the issues of business community so that when the trainee officers go back to their parent departments, they could facilitate the private sector with better understanding of its problems. She further highlighted the role of NIM Karachi in providing quality trainings to the public sector officers and said that since its inception in 1961, NIM Karachi had been conducting a number of programs every year in the domain of public policy and management. The institute was also involved in research and analysis of key public policy issues, she explained. NIM Karachi, in addition to conducting “in-service” mandatory trainings of civil servants at mid-career and senior management levels, also organized customized training courses for different public sector entities, she further said. Intizar reiterated that the main goal of such visits was to build upon and further refine the existing approach towards the public sector development and service delivery. We were fortunate to have an excellent blend of permanent and visiting faculty members, comprising of serving and retired academics and practitioners who are experts in their respective fields, she added. At the end, questions and answers session was held and both sides asked questions from each other and offered good suggestions to streamline matters. Published in Daily Times, September 26th 2018.