ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s readiness to invest billions of dollars in various sectors of Pakistan vastly helps to alleviate the country’s economy and expands the multi-layered relationship between Islamabad and Riyadh.
The Saudi investments will also encourage other Gulf states and multinational companies to invest in Pakistan’s agriculture, information technology, mineral, and mining sectors.
On September 4, interim Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar said Saudi Arabia will invest $25 billion in Pakistan’s different sectors in two to five years.
The projected worth of precious minerals in Pakistan is up to $6 trillion. Pakistan’s government has formulated a hybrid Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) this year to explore the country’s mining sector.
The Council has been trying to woo foreign investors, particularly GCC and Chinese investors. Besides, it is also encouraging local financiers to invest in the energy, IT, minerals, defence, and agriculture sectors.
Pakistan needs Saudi support to alleviate its economic problems
Pakistan needs the help of Gulf nations, especially Saudi Arabia, to alleviate its economic problems.
The government has already approved 20 projects, including Saudi Aramco Refinery, hydropower projects of 245 MW in Gilgit-Baltistan, the establishment of cloud infrastructure, and telecom infrastructure deployment.
Saudi Arabia has also supported Pakistan in improving its agricultural productivity.
Another important project of the Saudis will be a greenfield oil refinery at Gwadar. On July 27, Saudi Arabia’s Aramco signed a memorandum of understanding with four Pakistani state-owned oil companies (OGDCL, PSO, PPL, and GHPL) to set up $12 billion refinery with a capacity of 300,000 barrels per day.
Islamabad has been working with Riyadh closely to explore investment opportunities in IT sector as Saudi Arabia is the fastest-growing international market in the field of technology.
Last week, Saudi-based multinational Unifonic displayed its products at a three-day exhibition titled ‘Declaring Pakistan the Regional ICT Hub’ at the Expo Center, Karachi.
Saudi Arabia has shown unbelievable generosity to Pakistan, helping to counter the severe economic crisis, and the $25 billion investment could assist Islamabad in addressing its financial problems.
