- Saudi assistant investment minister, representatives of 30 Saudi companies are part of the delegation
- Saudi Arabia recently reaffirmed its commitment to expedite investment for Pakistan worth $5 billion
- The two sides will also discuss opportunities in information technology (IT), religious tourism, telecommunication, aviation, construction, water and power sectors.
ISLAMABAD ( Web News )
Pakistan-Saudi Arabia investment conference to begin in Islamabad today to promote bilateral trade and investment
Two-day Pakistan-Saudi Arabia investment conference will begin in Islamabad today (Monday) to promote bilateral trade and investment.
A 50 member high-level business delegation from Saudi Arabia will attend the conference to explore investment opportunities in different sectors as well as to forge strong bonds with local entrepreneurs.
Some 30 Saudi companies representing different economic sectors, including information technology, telecoms, energy, aviation, construction, mining exploration, agriculture and human resource development are part of the delegation.
Meanwhile a high-level Saudi business delegation arrived in Pakistan on Sunday with the aim of signing agreements and MoUs for investment in different sectors of the Pakistani economy.
Federal Ministers Dr. Musadik Masood Malik and Mir Jam Kamal Khan welcomed the delegation upon its arrival in Islamabad.
Heads of over thirty Saudi companies from agriculture, technology, retail, and corporate sectors are part of this delegation.
The visit is expected to bolster foreign investment in Pakistan, and give new momentum to Pakistan-Saudi economic relations, as was envisioned during the recent visit of the Prime Minister to Saudi Arabia.
A high-level Saudi business delegation, led by the Kingdom’s Assistant Minister of Investment Ibrahim Al-Mubarak, arrived in Pakistan on Sunday to explore investment opportunities in various economic sectors, the Pakistani commerce ministry said.
Pakistan’s Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan and Petroleum Minister Musadik Malik received the 50-member Saudi delegation at the Nur Khan air base in the garrison city of Rawalpindi.
The three-day visit of the delegation is aimed at promoting trade relations between investors of the two countries with regard to various business opportunities in Pakistan, according to Khan.
The Pakistani commerce ministry has selected a large number of Pakistani companies in relevant sectors for business-to-business (B2B) meetings with their Saudi counterparts.
“Top Pakistani companies will tie up with 30 Saudi companies in various sectors,” the Pakistani commerce ministry quoted him as saying. “Business-to-business (B2B) meetings will focus on sectors such as agriculture, mining, human resources, energy, chemicals and maritime.”
The two sides will also discuss opportunities in information technology (IT), religious tourism, telecommunication, aviation, construction, water and power sectors.
“Both Saudi and Pakistani companies and investors will look for investment opportunities, which will be aimed at creating jobs and promoting export opportunities in both countries,” the minister said.
Khan hoped that a number of firms would be able to make business and investment deals at B2B engagements during the visit.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia enjoy strong ties rooted in shared culture, religion and economic cooperation, and have witnessed a flurry of official visits in recent weeks.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan traveled to Islamabad in April before Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s two-day visit to the Kingdom to attend a World Economic Forum meeting where he met top Saudi officials.
Speaking to media on Saturday, Pakistani Petroleum Minister Musadik Malik, who is also the focal person for Saudi-Pak bilateral collaboration, said Pakistan had always cherished cordial ties with the Kingdom, though it had not managed to turn this “relationship of friendship into a relationship of stability and progress.”
He said Pakistan mostly discussed its financial concerns with the Saudi authorities and requested their support, however, the present government wanted to change that by focusing its bilateral conversations on mutually beneficial progress and development, not aid and assistance.
Both Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have lately been working to increase bilateral trade and investment deals, and the Kingdom recently reaffirmed its commitment to expedite an investment package worth $5 billion.
Malik said the bilateral collaboration would primarily benefit small businesses, particularly the technology companies established by young students, who were likely to get a significant amount of investment from Saudi entrepreneurs.