ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan will lead the country’s delegation to attend the 14th Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit in Makkah on 31 May.
Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz has invited 57 members of the OIC to attend the current summit, which will be the fourth such session to be held in the holy city of Makkah.
The two-day summit is expected to discuss an array of key issues confronting the Muslim world, mulling over ways to forge unity within the Muslim Ummah, especially given the rising tensions in the Arabian Gulf.
Prime Minister Khan is also expected to meet leaders of the Muslim world on the sidelines of the summit.
Senator Sehar Kamran, member of Pakistan’s upper house of the parliament, lauded the Kingdom’s leading role and commended the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman for hosting the OIC summit.
“The upcoming 14th session of Islamic Summit in Makkah is taking place in critical times …. in these testing times, the kingdom of Saudi Arabia can play a vital role in forging harmony and unity within the Muslim Ummah and lead the Muslim countries to confront the growing threat of terrorism and militancy in the region,” Kamran told Arab News.
She said the “recent wave of Missile attacks in Saudi Arabia, specifically the evil designs to target the holy sites, has developed serious concerns across the Muslim Ummah. I hope the Islamic Summit will be instrumental in identifying and containing evil conspiracies.”
Rizwan Ul Haq Mahmood, Pakistan’s former consul general in Jeddah, said that Saudi Arabia is “undoubtedly the political leader of the Islamic world” and has always made “strenuous efforts to bridge the gulf between Islamic countries.”
“Saudi Arabia’s effort is again aimed at reviving the unity of thought among Muslim states and ensure a unanimous stand in thorny issues confronted by the Ummah.”
Hafiz Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi, chairman of the All Pakistan Ulema Council, said that OIC summit in Makkah is of key importance as the entire Muslim world has pinned high hopes with its outcome.
“Saudi role and its services for the Islamic world cannot be ignored. The decision of Khadim-e-Harmain Al-Sharifain [Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques] King Salman bin Abdulaziz to invite leadership of Muslim countries and Muslim Ulema and scholars on the night of 27th Ramadan is a positive sign to seek solution for the prevailing challenges confronting the Muslim world,” said Ashrafi.
Founded in 1969, the OIC is the second largest intergovernmental organization after the UN with 57 member states from four continents. It represents the Islamic world and seeks to protect its interests.
Pakistan pins high hopes on OIC summit
Pakistan pins high hopes on OIC summit
- King Salman has invited 57 members to the 14th OIC summit in Makkah
- Makkah summits reflect vital Saudi role in forging unity within Muslim Ummah, Pakistani lawmaker says
Pakistan plans $80 million seafood zone at Karachi harbor to target Gulf markets
- Plan aims to move exports away from raw seafood toward higher-value processed products
- Project will be developed under public-private partnership or build-operate-transfer model
KARACHI: Pakistan plans to develop a seafood processing and export zone at Karachi’s Qur’angi Fisheries Harbor that could cost up to $80 million to boost value-added exports and position the country as a supplier to the Gulf and other regional markets, Maritime Affairs Minister Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry said on Saturday.
The proposed 100-acre project aims to shift Pakistan away from exporting raw seafood by building modern processing, cold-chain and packaging infrastructure linked to international buyers, as Islamabad looks to expand its blue economy and deepen maritime trade ties with the region.
In a statement, Chaudhry said the zone would be developed, financed and operated under a public-private partnership or build-operate-transfer (BOT) model, with private investors running the facilities and the Qur’angi Fisheries Harbor Authority retaining regulatory oversight.
“The estimated project cost ranges between $60 million and $80 million, based on regional benchmarks from countries such as Vietnam, China and Ecuador, which have developed similar seafood parks,” Chaudhry said.
He said the facility would include 20 to 25 medium- to large-scale seafood processing units for fish, shrimp and cephalopods, alongside large-scale cold storage, blast freezing, packaging facilities, logistics and export terminals, and a wastewater treatment plant to ensure environmentally compliant operations.
“Packaging and labeling units would operate under international food safety and quality standards, including HACCP and ISO certifications, offering vacuum packing, modified atmosphere packaging and retail-ready solutions,” he said, referring to Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points, a preventive food safety system.
ISO certification verifies that a company’s management systems meet international standards.
The minister said the zone would be used exclusively for commercial seafood processing, packaging, cold storage and export-oriented activities, with multi-temperature storage ranging from minus 18 to minus 40 degrees Celsius and ice plants capable of producing 50 to 100 tons daily.
Chaudhry said the preferred investment structure is a BOT concession under which the private partner would finance, develop and operate the project for an expected 20-year tenure, with ownership reverting to the harbor authority at the end of the concession period.
He added that the estimated internal rate of return was projected between 13 percent and 17 percent, with revenue generated through lease rentals, processing fees, logistics services and export-linked earnings.
“The project will position Pakistan as a key maritime trade and seafood export hub serving Gulf, East African and Asian markets,” Chaudhry said.
