KSA’s Assistant Minister for Investment says Pakistan, Saudi Arabia are major economic partners  Foreign investment must for Pakistan’s stability: Aurangzeb  Finance minister says govt now moving towards privatisation  Govt to promote businesses to steer economy on right direction: Jam Kamal  Musadik Malik says Pak-Saudi collaboration will lead Pakistan’s economy towards growth. 

ISLAMABAD   -   Saudi Assistant Minister for Investment, Ibrahim Al Mubarak on Monday said that Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are major economic partners and both countries have always supported each other with a common economic vision.

He said that ‘Pakistan’s Diaspora including many professional and skilled workers in Saudi Arabia were playing a major role in the economic development of Saudi Arabia. He said this while addressing at the Pakistan- Saudi Arab Investment Forum, 2024 held here on Monday.

Similarly, there are historical economic, trade and unprecedented diplomatic ties between the two countries, which are enhancing, day by day, he said and added that Pakistan and Saudi Arabia had always provided support to each other for bilateral economic development.

Currently, 2 million Pakistanis are working in Saudi Arabia, including doctors, engineers and professors, Ibrahim Al Mubarak said and added that currently, most of Pakistanis are working very hard on Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and economic development.

He said Saudi companies are always ready to invest in Pakistan and contribute to its economic development. Pakistan has resources and full of potential and Saudi investors will help in the economic development of Pakistan.

The Saudi minister said that Saudi Arabia and Pakistan were major economic allies and both the countries had always supported each other on different occasions.

The Saudi Minister said that the two countries were bound in historical religious relations, which paved the way for our economic relations. He said that the extraordinary reception and hospitality had been extended to his delegation in Pakistan, for which he was grateful to the government of Pakistan.

Meanwhile, Commerce Minister Jam Kamal while addressing the forum, said that at this time all the focus of the government is on business to business relations. The commerce minister said that the government was currently carrying out economic reforms and was expecting to improve the country’s economy. Jam Kamal said that the role of the business community in the economic relations between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia was very important at this time and more focus was on negotiations and implementation of economic vision through the private sector.

He said that the visit of Saudi investors to Pakistan today was important because the private sectors of both countries had special importance in it.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb on Monday said that foreign investment is necessary for ‘Macro Economic Stability’ in Pakistan and the visit of Saudi investors to Pakistan is a link in this chain.

The Finance Minister said this while addressing to Pakistan Saudi Arab Investment Forum, 2024 held here.

He said that short, medium and long-term strategies are being worked on for Macro Economic Stability, which will further develop the country’s economy. He said that the government is working on structural economic reforms and continuing the work on structural reform, on which the government is busy for implementation.

He said that the energy sector in the country is very important at this time and energy reforms are going on.

The minister said that at present all the economic indicators are going positive in the country’s economy, which is the proof of the progress of the country’s economy.  He said that agriculture is growing by 5 percent and major crops including wheat and rice have had bumper crops this year.

The minister said that current account surplus is going on in macroeconomic indicators positive.

Along with this, the Federal Board of Revenue has increased the record federal revenue this year.

He said that inflation has down and reached 17 percent which is decreasing in last one month.

He said that the shares of Pakistan Stock Exchange are increasing and PSX is continuously balancing.

He said that recently Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the side line of World Economic Forum.

It was a successful visit to Saudi Arabia, which opened the way for economic cooperation between the two countries.

Muhammad Aurangzeb said that in the last two weeks, three high-level delegations have been exchanged between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Today, the visit of a delegation of Saudi investors to Pakistan is also a part of paving the way for this economic cooperation.

He said that the government is now moving towards privatization and PIA will also be privatized. He said that export-led growth, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and excess to capital are the priority of the government.

‘Ending red tape’

Minister for Petroleum, Dr. Musadiq Malik, said on Monday that the government led by Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif is committed to ending red tape and facilitating the business community for sustainable economic growth.

Addressing a press conference alongside Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal Khan and Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar Tarar, Dr. Malik said, “Prime Minister has issued instructions to eliminate red-tapism and reduce regulations to provide conducive environment and level playing field for all investors.”

He said that Saudi Arabian companies have established separate desks, and Pakistani companies are engaged in negotiations to enhance their business at the international level.

The minister expressed optimism that several companies would finalize business and investment deals during the business-to-business (B2B) sessions, fostering greater economic cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

He highlighted the presence of over 100 Pakistani companies at the investment conference, negotiating cooperation with Saudi companies across various sectors including agriculture, mining, human resources, energy, chemicals, maritime, IT, religious tourism, telecom, aviation, construction, water, and power generation.

He believed that the Pakistan-Saudi Arabia investment conference would promote bilateral trade and investment, ushering in a new era of growth and prosperity and creating job opportunities for young people to start small businesses with Saudi Arabian companies. He said that the investment conference would provide new directions and hope for Pakistan. He thanked Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal Khan for his leadership in appointing coordinators for each company that arrived in Pakistan to facilitate their engagement.