A group of 40 Saudi investors has shown interest to invest in telecom, information technology, power generation, hydel power project, housing, livestock, food processing, agriculture, floriculture and dairy farm besides joint ventures with Pakistani businessmen. Saudi investors met Pakistani businessmen at a local hotel for two hours and discussed new avenues for joint ventures in addition to areas of individual investment, said an official close to the Saudi delegation.
Matters pertaining to bilateral investment were also discussed between Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar and visiting Saudi Commerce Minister Dr Hashim A Yemni at a meeting in Commerce Ministry.
Humayun apprised his Saudi counterpart that Pakistani businessmen were still facing hurdles in getting visas, and urged him to remove restrictions immediately.
Both Minister also co-chaired the Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) wherein Humayun said that Pakistan was providing maximum facilities to foreign investors, adding that regulatory regime was continuously being made business-friendly. "Restrictions on investment are at a minimum and hardly any official sanctions or permissions are required for trading and investment operations by foreigners," he said.
He said that goods and service sectors were open for participation by non-Pakistanis. The regulations for inflow of capital and repatriation of proceeds are also very liberal.
He said that the government has been consistently liberalising its trade and investment regime so that Pakistan's trade and investment regime could be considered as one of the most liberal in the region at the present time.
Khan said that this was an excellent time to invest in Pakistan especially in value-added textile sector, fruit and vegetable processing, and engineering sector especially in European model small cars and tractors, renewable energy, petrochemical, shrimp farming and construction sectors.
Buyer-driven FDI especially finds large opportunity in Pakistan in both traditional and core sectors such as textile and clothing, rice, leather footwear, surgical and sports goods as well as in new categories such as shrimp farming horticulture (flowers, fruits and vegetable), marble and granite, furniture, gems and jewellery and electro-medical equipment. Re-location of industries in these sectors via a policy decision has been made highly favourable, especially for relocation of industries from abroad.
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