Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar has said Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have committed to “clear” and “tangible” investment projects in Pakistan.
Speaking in an interview, the prime minister said the members and stakeholders of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) had worked on identifying various sectors ripe for investment.
“There is a clear tangible plan with a timeline [on] where to do interventions,” he said, as well as who the potential partners would be, adding that they were already identified and engaged in communication.
“We are in the process where probably in the next few months, we will be realising one, two or three projects in different areas on the ground,” he added.
Questioned on which countries had expressed serious interest in the venture, the premier said: “Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar … have shown a lot of interest. It’s not just that they have shown interest, they have assured and they have commitments that they would come for some tangible projects in Pakistan.”
The prime minister’s remarks come on the heels of his saying, while speaking to journalists at his official residence on Monday, that Saudi Arabia will invest up to $25 billion in Pakistan over the next two to five years in various sectors.
He had said Saudi Arabia’s investment would come in the mining, agriculture and information technology sectors, and was part of a push to increase foreign direct investment in Pakistan.
If confirmed, a series of investments worth $25bn would be the biggest ever by the kingdom in Pakistan.
Meanwhile, questioned about the caretaker government’s relief proposals to the International Monetary Fund and their rejection by the fund, the prime minister said both sides had explored “many venues” and there was an agreement that the economic class which did not contribute to the tax base should not be incentivised.
