Hafeez Shaikh urges US firms to tap business opportunities in Pakistan

WASHINGTON: Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh has said Pakistan’s economy is on the path to stabilisation and urged US firms to benefit from investment opportunities available in the country.

He made this statement while attending a roundtable discussion with senior executives of the US-Pakistan Business Council which hosted a luncheon in honour of the PM aide and members of his delegation at the US Chamber of Commerce.

The Pakistani delegation led by Dr. Shaikh is currently visiting the US to attend the IMF and WB annual meetings-2019.

Talking to members of the US-Pakistan Business Council, the adviser highlighted the government’s focus on improving ease-of-doing-business and encouraged the US companies to expand their footprint in Pakistan.

The roundtable was attended by senior executives of the USPBC member companies including S & P Global, PepsiCo, Motorola Solutions Inc, Citi, Google, ExxonMobil, and others.

Later, Dr Shaikh along with members of his delegation met with Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) President Jin Liqun.

They discussed the AIIB portfolio in Pakistan and potential areas of project financing by the Bank.

The president AIIB reiterated support for Pakistan’s development agenda and stated that AIIB was ready to increase funding for Pakistan’s priority development sectors. He added investment in infrastructure projects had a long term positive impact on growth.

The adviser invited the AIIB president to visit Pakistan which the latter accepted.

Dr. Shaikh along with his team also met with Islamic Development Bank (IDB) President Dr Bandar M H Hajjar and briefed him on the current economic situation in the country.

The adviser thanked the president for IDB’s technical and financial support to Pakistan.

The president IDB informed that Pakistan had been identified as one of the first countries which will be supported by the Bank for strengthening market competitiveness in its core sectors.

An IDB mission would soon visit the country for this purpose.

The adviser also held a meeting with Nena Stoiljkovic, Vice President of the IFC—a sister organisation of the World Bank and member of the World Bank Group as well as the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in developing countries.

Stoiljkovic and her team briefed the adviser about IFC’s projects in Pakistan, particularly in the wind and solar sectors and also expressed interest in providing advisory services for structuring public-private partnership transactions.

The Pakistan delegation also attended the Annual Plenary of the IMF and World Bank Group which was addressed by World Bank President David Malpass and International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva.