KARACHI: The Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI), the chamber of over 200 leading foreign investors in Pakistan belonging to 35 countries, has released the consolidated financial contribution of its members for the year 2020 based on feedback from 170 members, 50 of whom are subsidiaries of Fortune 500 companies.

The foreign investors have contributed significantly towards the GDP of the country and have maintained the OICCI position as the largest chamber of commerce in terms of economic contribution in the country.

This comprehensive survey is being conducted annually since 2009.

Elaborating on the key features of the OICCI 2020 Economic Contribution survey, Irfan Siddiqui, OICCI president, said, “We are proud that in the past twelve months, OICCI members, despite very challenging and uncertain business environment due to COVID-19 impact on the business and life of people globally and in Pakistan, contributed over Rs1.4 trillion, or approximately five billion rupees each working day, towards the tax revenue of Pakistan, approximately one-third of the total tax collection in the country. Two of the OICCI members paid taxes in excess of Rs100 billion each.”

Commenting on the significant contribution of foreign investors in the economy of Pakistan, Irfan Siddiqui said that the OICCI members believed in Pakistan, and they were keen on playing a more prominent role in a growing economy supported by a predictable, transparent and stable policy framework and a business-friendly regulatory and operating environment.

The OICCI members have invested over $18 billion in the past nine years, largely in the energy, telecom, chemicals, food/FMCG and banking sectors. The Secretary-General of OICCI, M. Abdul Aleem, said the OICCI members, with an asset base of $137bn, maintained their position as the leading investors in Pakistan in 2020.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021