JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia's Deputy Minister for Foreign Trade Abdulrahman Al-Harbi has declared Pakistan one of Saudi Arabia’s “top destinations for making investments,” according to Pakistan’s Ministry of Commerce.
Al-Harbi made his comment at the first meeting of the two countries' Joint Working Group on Trade and Investment in Riyadh on Tuesday, the ministry said.
Commerce Secretary Mohammed Younus Dagha led the Pakistani delegation, which also included Additional Secretary for the Board of Investment (BOI), Saleem Ranjha, and Pakistan's Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Khan Hasham Bin Saddique. The Saudi Ambassador to Pakistan, Nawaf Saeed Ahmad Al-Maliki, also attended the talks.
“The Saudi side acknowledged and appreciated the attraction of Pakistan as an investment destination, in view of its macroeconomic indicators, growth projects, strategic location and overall investment regime,” the statement read.
The ministry said that the Saudi officials showed interest in investing in Pakistan in a number of sectors including petrochemicals, dairy, livestock, and mining.
“It was agreed that Saudi Arabia will send a technical team to Pakistan to review sector-specific opportunities and projects,” the statement added.
In major leap forward in bilateral economic cooperation, it was agreed that the two sides would activate a Pakistan-Saudi Joint Business Council within two months. Pakistan will also stage its single-country exhibition in Saudi Arabia in 2018.
“In order to give further impetus to trade relations, it was agreed to mutually facilitate trade by removing obstacles related to visa fees, company registration, shipment delays and mutual recognition of standards,” the statement explained.
Dr. Vaqar Ahmed, joint executive director at Islamabad-based think tank Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), told Arab News that Saudi Arabia and Saudi investors see Pakistan as a very lucrative destination.
“Several investors already working in the country are scaling up their business operations and entering into new joint ventures,” he said. “They see the current wave of economic growth as a significant opportunity.”
Ahmed added that the pace of growth in Pakistan is projected to pick up once the projects related to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) are complete and the new infrastructure brings down the cost of doing business in the country.
“Saudi investors also recognize the vast economic potential emanating from the large domestic demand of the sixth-largest population in the world,” Ahmed pointed out.
Saudi Arabia views Pakistan as one of top destinations for investment: Saudi deputy minister
Saudi Arabia views Pakistan as one of top destinations for investment: Saudi deputy minister
Pakistan expresses condolences as Bangladesh’s first female PM passes away
- Khaleda Zia passed away in Dhaka after prolonged illness at the age of 80, says her party
- PM Shehbaz Sharif describes Zia as a “committed friend of Pakistan” in condolence message
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday expressed condolences over the passing of Bangladesh’s first female prime minister, Khaleda Zia, describing her as a committed friend of Islamabad.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) announced its leader Zia had passed away at the age of 80 after prolonged illness. She died at the Evercare Hospital in Dhaka, where the former prime minister was admitted on Nov. 23 with symptoms of a lung infection, according to The Daily Star, a Bangladesh news website.
“Deeply saddened by the passing of Begum Khaleda Zia, Chairperson of the BNP and former Prime Minister of Bangladesh,” Sharif wrote on social media platform X.
“Her lifelong service to Bangladesh and its growth and development leaves a lasting legacy.”
Sharif said his government and people stand with the people of Bangladesh during this difficult time.
“Begum Zia was a committed friend of Pakistan,” he added.
Pakistan and Bangladesh used to be part of the same country before the latter seceded into the separate nation of Bangladesh after a bloody civil war in 1971.
Ties between the two countries have remained mostly strained since then. However, Islamabad enjoyed better relations with Dhaka under Zia’s government compared to when Bangladesh was led by her arch-rival, Sheikh Hasina.
Hasina was ousted after a violent uprising last year, leading to improved relations between Islamabad and Dhaka.
Despite years of ill health and imprisonment, Zia vowed in November to campaign in elections set for February 2026.
The BNP is widely seen as a frontrunner, and Zia’s son Tarique Rahman, who returned only on Thursday after 17 years in exile, is seen as a potential prime minister if they win a majority.
-With additional input from AFP
