ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi arrived in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Thursday, today, on a two-day visit, the Pakistani foreign office said.
The visit comes at a time when international media has reported that the UAE had stopped issuing new visas to citizens of 13 mostly Muslim-majority countries, including Pakistan.
Pakistani officials, including Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Special Assistant on Overseas Pakistanis, Sayid Zulfiqar Bukhari, have denied the reports, saying there was “no ban on export of Pakistani workforce.”
The UAE is home to 1.2 million Pakistanis and the second largest host to overseas Pakistani workers and source of foreign remittances, after Saudi Arabia.
“During the visit, the Foreign Minister will hold discussions with the UAE leadership on all areas of mutual interest including regional and global issues,” a statement said. “The Foreign Minister will exchange views on bilateral cooperation, in particular trade, investment and the welfare of Pakistani diaspora.”
He will also meet members of the Pakistani diaspora and interact with local and international media.
Pakistani foreign minister arrives in UAE on two-day visit
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Pakistani foreign minister arrives in UAE on two-day visit
- Shah Mahmood Qureshi will discuss bilateral cooperation, trade, investment and welfare of Pakistani diaspora with UAE leaders
- He will also meet members of the Pakistani diaspora and interact with local and international media
IMF hails Pakistan privatization drive, calls PIA sale a ‘milestone’
- Fund backs sale of national airline as key step in divesting loss-making state firms
- IMF has long urged Islamabad to reduce fiscal burden posed by state-owned entities
KARACHI: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Saturday welcomed Pakistan’s privatization efforts, describing the sale of the country’s national airline to a private consortium last month as a milestone that could help advance the divestment of loss-making state-owned enterprises (SOEs).
The comments follow the government’s sale of a 75 percent stake in Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to a consortium led by the Arif Habib Group for Rs 135 billion ($486 million) after several rounds of bidding in a competitive process, marking Islamabad’s second attempt to privatize the carrier after a failed effort a year earlier.
Between the two privatization attempts, PIA resumed flight operations to several international destinations after aviation authorities in the European Union and Britain lifted restrictions nearly five years after the airline was grounded following a deadly Airbus A320 crash in Karachi in 2020 that killed 97 people.
“We welcome the authorities’ privatization efforts and the completion of the PIA privatization process, which was a commitment under the EFF,” Mahir Binici, the IMF’s resident representative in Pakistan, said in response to an Arab News query, referring to the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility.
“This privatization represents a milestone within the authorities’ reform agenda, aimed at decreasing governmental involvement in commercial sectors and attracting investments to promote economic growth in Pakistan,” he added.
The IMF has long urged Islamabad to reduce the fiscal burden posed by loss-making state firms, which have weighed public finances for years and required repeated government bailouts. Beyond PIA, the government has signaled plans to restructure or sell stakes in additional SOEs as part of broader reforms under the IMF program.
Privatization also remains politically sensitive in Pakistan, with critics warning of job losses and concerns over national assets, while supporters argue private sector management could improve efficiency and service delivery in chronically underperforming entities.
Pakistan’s Cabinet Committee on State-Owned Enterprises said on Friday that SOEs recorded a net loss of Rs 122.9 billion ($442 million) in the 2024–25 fiscal year, compared with a net loss of Rs 30.6 billion ($110 million) in the previous year.
