ISLAMABAD: A significant Saudi group, consisting of numerous investors, has touched down in Islamabad for a three-day visit to investigate investment prospects. Pakistan seeks to attract international investors in order to increase exports through partnerships with Saudi businesses.
According to a press release from the Ministry of Commerce, Petroleum Minister Musadik Malik and Commerce Minister Jam Kamal received the team headed by Saudi Deputy Investment Minister Ibrahim Almubarak at the Nur Khan airfield.
The aim of the visit, according to the minister of commerce, is to find trade and investment opportunities across different sectors of the national economy and to strengthen commercial relations between investors from both countries.
According to him, the ministry selected a number of Pakistani businesses for business-to-business (B2B) talks with the Saudi investors. It also revealed that “leading” Pakistani businesses would work with at least thirty Saudi businesses in various industries. Local businesses will pitch their investment and business ideas to their Saudi counterparts during the sessions.
The industries that will be the focus of the B2B meetings include mining, agriculture, energy, chemicals, human resources, and maritime. Furthermore, he said, talks will also touch on investment prospects in other industries, such as IT, communication, aviation, religious tourism, building, water, and power generation.
The minister voiced hope that more business and investment agreements might be finalized by a number of firms during the B2B sessions, resulting in increased economic cooperation between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, promised to expedite the first wave of a planned $5 billion Saudi investment package for Pakistan during a recent visit by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The information minister had termed the premier’s visit “highly successful” and said that major developments would take place within the next few months because of the PM’s trip to Riyadh. “Within a short span of just one month, the prime minister held two meetings with the Saudi crown prince which has a historic significance for the two brotherly countries,” the minister had said.
Anwaarul Haq Kakar, the former acting prime minister, has traveled to Saudi Arabia prior to Shehbaz Sharif. He declared in September 2023 that during the “next two to five years,” the Saudi government would make up to $25 billion in various industry investments in Pakistan.
