The High Commission facilitated an online meeting between the Board of Investment (BOI) and Enterprise Singapore (ESG), today, to brief Singaporean stakeholders on immense investment opportunities in Pakistan to increase the Republic’s investment footprint in the country.

Secretary BOI, Ms. Fareena Mazhar gave an overview of the investment incentives being offered by Pakistan and expressed the hope that Singaporean companies would benefit from these rare opportunities. She enumerated several initiatives taken by the Government of Pakistan including allocation of Special Economic Zones, Special Technology Zones, liberal visa policies and revision of Bilateral Investment Treaty to attract foreign investment in Pakistan. She particularly highlighted the soon-to-be launched Joint Venture Portal, where vetted and reliable Pakistani companies would digitally display their projects for foreign investors to choose from, as a significant milestone in Pakistan’s economic trajectory. Mr. Sohail Qadri, Director Punjab Board of Investment and Trade dilated on investment scope in Punjab province as the largest retail market and biggest host of SEZs in Pakistan. He underscored that Singaporean businessman could explore investment complementarities in labour-intensive sectors in Punjab.

The High Commissioner, in her opening remarks, expressed the hope that the interaction between BOI and ESG would lead to productive, long-term collaboration. She noted that appointment of Mr. Abdul Lateef Siddiqui as Honorary Investment Counsellor of Pakistan to Singapore would augment the efforts of the High Commission to bridge the investment gap.

Appreciating the robust incentive structure offered by Government of Pakistan, Ms. Audery Tan, Director Global Markets (South Asia), ESG emphasized the need for raising awareness of investment opportunities in Pakistan among Singaporean businessmen. She lauded Joint Venture Portal as a welcome step and expressed the hope that it would be pivotal in enabling the investors to find suitable trusted partners in Pakistan. She also expressed willingness to work closely with BOI and Singapore Business Federation (SBF), to reach out to Singaporean businessmen regarding Pakistan’s liberal investment regime.

Amb. Shamsher Zaman, Vice President, Singapore Business Federation (South Asia Group) recalled the first ever visit of Singapore Business Federation to Pakistan in February 2019 and noted that the interaction between the Singapore and Pakistan business community continued through the High Commission’s and SBF’s active collaboration in hosting sectoral webinars in areas such as agro food, digital technology etc. He also highlighted the opportunities for Singaporean businessmen in the CPEC projects.

The two sides agreed to remain engaged and continue their discussions for tangible outcomes. They concluded by thanking the High Commission for its unwavering support and efforts in bringing all the stakeholders on one platform for the online discussion.

Singapore
28th February 2022