Ms Elizabeth L Littlefield, President and Chief Executive Officer of OPIC (US Overseas Private Investment Corporation) and Richard Olson, United States Ambassador to Pakistan visited Karachi and met with business community during a briefing session on "Mobilising Private Capital for Growth in Pakistan" organised by US Consulate in collaboration with Trade Development Authority of Pakistan and the Sindh Board of Investment, says a press release.
OPIC offers investment & financing to Pakistani companies focused on infrastructure development, sustainable energy & other value added projects. The financing also covers small & medium Enterprises (SMEs). Ms Rabiya Javeri Agha-Secretary TDAP kicked off the session stating that Pakistan needs investment to cope with quality infrastructure & energy infrastructure challenges.
She hoped that OPIC investment would help mobilise private capital to solve critical challenges & to catalyse jobs opportunities in Pakistan. She requested the US mission to use their good offices with US department of Commerce in Washington DC, USA to allow for more Pakistan made products to be included on the list of zero duty entry into USA.
Ms Elizabeth L. Littlefield briefed Pakistani business community about the details of OPIC products & explained the parameters for such projects. Littlefield said that OPIC is working in more than 100 countries and it directs & guarantees loans for all kind of projects ranging from US $2 million to US $40 million. The US Ambassador to Pakistan also assured Pakistani investors of the continued support of the US Government.
Secretary TDAP & Chairman SBI proposed holding road shows in USA to highlight feasible projects in Pakistan to gain the attention of US investors and promote Pakistan-US investor business relations. Renowned businessmen, chairmen & CEOs of major companies attended &demonstrating their confidence and expectations to establish business relationship with US investors for development of new growth projects. TDAP & SBI assured the OPIC team to extend their full support to investment oriented projects & flows of FDI into Pakistan.-PR