ISLAMABAD: The European Union (EU) mission in Pakistan will be hosting a business and investment forum in Islamabad this year, the Pakistani finance ministry said on Friday.
The statement came after EU Ambassador to Pakistan Riina Kionka’s meeting with Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, which focused on a range of matters of mutual interest, particularly business and investment ties between the EU and Pakistan.
During the meeting, the two figures discussed opportunities for European businesses in Pakistan and emphasized the need to create an enabling investment climate to harness the growing appetite for expansion, according to the Pakistani finance ministry.
Dr. Kionka said the EU had already mapped over 300 European companies in Pakistan and there were many more present, extending an invitation to Senator Aurangzeb to attend the business and investment forum, which the EU mission is planning to host in Islamabad in mid-May.
“The forum aims to foster collaboration and discuss how Pakistan can continue to attract European business [and] investment,” the finance ministry said. “She emphasized that European companies were increasingly viewing Pakistan as a hub for potential business opportunities, especially in light of the upcoming forum.”
Pakistan, currently bolstered by a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) program, is seeking foreign investment and an increase in trade to revive its fragile $350 billion economy.
Aurangzeb thanked the EU envoy for taking the initiative to host the forum, underscoring the government’s commitment to supporting EU businesses in Pakistan, facilitating their operations, and ensuring timely repatriation of dividends and profits.
He expressed appreciation for the EU’s support for Pakistan, particularly the importance of the Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) facility, which has been a critical enabler of Pakistan’s efforts to drive export-led growth.
The GSP+ scheme grants beneficiary countries’ exports duty-free access to the European market in exchange for voluntarily agreeing to implement 27 international core conventions, including on human and civil rights. In October 2023, the EU unanimously voted to extend GSP+ status until 2027 for developing countries, including Pakistan.
“The Minister also emphasized the need for a more proactive approach in reaching out to European capitals for constructive engagement on key issues, including the continuation of the GSP Plus facility, which is vital for Pakistan’s trade relations with the EU in the coming years,” the finance ministry said.
“Both leaders reaffirmed their shared commitment to enhancing the economic and trade ties between Pakistan and the European Union, and to creating a thriving and mutually beneficial business environment for both sides.”
EU mission to host business, investment forum in Pakistan this year — finance ministry
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EU mission to host business, investment forum in Pakistan this year — finance ministry
- The forum aims to foster collaboration and discuss how Pakistan can continue to attract European businesses, investment
- Finmin thanks EU envoy for the initiative, underscores his government’s commitment to supporting EU businesses in Pakistan
Kazakhstan offers to finance rail link to Pakistan ports via Afghanistan
- Kazakh envoy says country ready to fully fund Central Asia-Pakistan rail corridor
- Project revives Pakistan’s regional connectivity push despite Afghan border disruptions
ISLAMABAD: Kazakhstan has offered to fully finance a proposed railway linking Central Asia to Pakistan’s ports via Afghanistan, according to a media report, a move that could revive long-stalled regional connectivity plans and deepen Pakistan’s role as a transit hub for landlocked economies.
The proposal would connect Kazakhstan to Pakistan’s ports of Karachi and Gwadar through Turkmenistan and Afghanistan, providing Central Asia with direct access to warm waters and offering Pakistan a long-sought overland trade corridor to the region.
“We are not asking Pakistan for a single penny,” Kazakhstan’s ambassador to Pakistan, Yerzhan Kistafin, said in an interview with Geo News on Tuesday. “This is not aid. It is a mutually beneficial investment.”
Pakistan has for years sought to position itself as a gateway for Central Asian trade, offering its ports to landlocked economies as part of a broader strategy to integrate South and Central Asia.
However, its ambition has faced setbacks, most recently in October last year when border skirmishes with Afghanistan prompted Islamabad to shut key crossings, suspending transit and bilateral trade.
Kistafin said the rail project would treat Afghanistan not as an obstacle but as a transit partner, arguing that trade and connectivity could help stabilize the country.
“Connectivity creates responsibility,” he said. “Trade creates incentives for peace.”
Under the proposed plan, rail cargo would move from Kazakhstan through Turkmenistan to western Afghanistan before entering Pakistan at Chaman and linking with the national rail network.
Geo News reported the Afghan segment, spanning about 687 kilometers, is expected to take roughly three years to build once agreements are finalized, with Kazakhstan financing the project.
