ISLAMABAD: Pakistani commerce minister Syed Naveed Qamar said on Thursday “aggressive marketing” in the fields of agriculture and technology was needed to expand Pakistani exports to Saudi Arabia, a statement from the ministry of commerce said.

Pakistani exports to the kingdom mainly comprise food products, textiles, and engineering goods. According to the United Nations COMTRADE database on international trade, Pakistan’s exports to Saudi Arabia stood at $402.81 million in 2021.

Exports to Saudi Arabia have seen a consistent increase from $336.9 million in 2017 to $342.08 million in 2019 and $446.18 million in 2020.

Qamar’s statement came after a meeting with Pakistan’s ambassador-designate to Saudi Arabia, Ahmed Farooq, in which the two discussed trade ties between the two brotherly countries.

“The federal minister stressed the need for aggressive marketing in the field of agriculture and technology to expand Pakistani exports to Saudi Arabia,” the statement from the commerce ministry said.

“He emphasized that Pakistan had immense potential to export agricultural products and technology to Saudi Arabia, and both countries needed to work together to identify new areas of cooperation.”

The minister also assured the ambassador-designate of his full support and cooperation.

“The ambassador-designate appreciated the efforts of Syed Naveed Qamar to improve the trade ties between the two countries and expressed his desire to work closely with the Ministry of Commerce to explore avenues for mutual investment,” the statement added. 

Prior to meeting the commerce minister, Farooq also met Pakistan’s state minister for foreign affairs, Hina Rabbani Khar, to talk about how to enhance bilateral relations with Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia is home to over two million Pakistanis and the largest contributor of remittance inflows to the South Asian nation.

Saudi authorities have also helped Pakistan deal with an ongoing economic crisis by offering a deferred oil payment facility and depositing about $3 billion in the central bank to help shore up forex reserves.