ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Punjab province and Azerbaijan have agreed to establish a joint working group to deepen economic cooperation and facilitate investment in sectors including infrastructure, energy, tourism and urban development, an official statement said on Wednesday.
The agreement was reached during a meeting between Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif and Azerbaijan’s Economic Affairs Minister Mikayil Jabbarov on the sidelines of the World Urban Forum in Baku, according to the Punjab government.
Pakistan has been seeking to attract foreign investment and strengthen economic partnerships as it pushes ahead with structural reforms aimed at boosting industrial growth and stabilizing the economy.
Punjab, the country’s most populous and industrialized province, has sought to position itself as a destination for infrastructure, logistics and technology-related investment.
“The two sides agreed to expand cooperation in trade, investment, urban development, agriculture, logistics, tourism and infrastructure,” the Punjab government said in a statement.
It said the newly formed working group would include government officials and technical experts from both sides and would identify priority sectors for cooperation and joint ventures.
“The working group will facilitate public-private partnership opportunities, investor coordination and project development,” the statement added.
The two sides also discussed the possibility of a preferential trade arrangement aimed at improving market access, reducing trade barriers and increasing bilateral trade volumes.
The Punjab chief minister invited Jabbarov to visit Pakistan and highlighted the province’s ongoing economic transformation agenda, including land-use reforms, special economic zones and the upcoming “Punjab Economic Transformation Plan,” according to the statement.
The provincial government said the discussions also covered investment opportunities for Azerbaijani businesses in smart cities, real estate, hospitality, agriculture value chains, logistics and information technology infrastructure.
The statement said both sides agreed to maintain close institutional coordination through the new working group and accelerate follow-up engagements aimed at converting discussions into investment-ready projects.
