Pakistan fizzing for Coca-Cola!

The loud bubbling sound resounding for a couple of days is that of Coca-Cola Internationals announcement to invest further in Pakistan. It is certainly a blessing when multinationals show signs of continuation in a country where security situation has left little for foreign investment.
Spurring some hope on the FDI side and that too in greenfield investment, the announcement by the parent company might not be an utter surprise; this column in its recent article titled MNCs high on Pakistan sentiments, highlights how the country ranks high on WSJs Frontier Markets Sentiment Index and is thus amongst the top frontier markets attracting the most attention from American and European multinationals.
Coca-Cola has steadily been investing in the Pakistani market for the last couple of years. And, with plans to further expand its operations in Pakistan and Egypt, it seems that the law-and-order situation-often quoted as the single most important reason for shying away of investors-is not stopping the leading multinational and the top global brand. Coca-Cola currently has bottling factories in Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Gujranwala, Faisalabad and Rahim Yar Khan; and the new investment plan consists of opening up of three new plants in Karachi, Multan and Islamabad for serving the market with sparkling drinks like Coke, Fanta and Sprite.
What is making Coca-Cola invest in developing countries that are hit by political instability and security crisis? In conversation with BR Research some six months ago, Rizwan Ullah Khan-Country Manager Coca-Cola Pakistan and Afghanistan--had revealed that Coca-Cola will be spending around $380 million in Pakistan over the next three years as it foresees a bulging 60 to 70 million of youth population with refined tastes.
Another point for the scope of Coca-Cola exists with the opportunity that lies with the potential for growth amid high tea consumption in the country. Rizwan Ullah Khan also mentioned that the country has a lot of room to grow as per capital consumption of carbonated beverages in Pakistan has risen staggeringly by 3.5 times since 2006.
Very little pours in and greenfield investment, and when it does, the target should be to derive the maximum out of it. Coca-Colas expansion plans should not only result in building up of new facilities to address product on constraints and gain market share, but should be able to create new long-term jobs in the country.