Daily Times

A 50-member high-level Saudi trade delegation led by the Deputy Investment Minister of Saudi Arabia, Ibrahim Almubarak, arrived in Pakistan on Sunday with the aim of exploring various avenues of trade and investment to further strengthen and promote bilateral relations between the two countries.

Upon their arrival at Noor Khan Air Base, the Saudi dignitaries were welcomed by Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal Khan and Petroleum Minister Musadik Masood Malik, according to a press release issued by the Ministry of Commerce.

Jam Kamal Khan highlighted that the three-day visit of the Saudi delegation was geared towards enhancing trade relations between investors from both countries and identifying trade and investment opportunities across various sectors of Pakistan’s economy.

He said that the ministry had selected numerous Pakistani companies in relevant sectors for Business-to-Business (B2B) meetings with their Saudi counterparts, adding that leading Pakistani companies would collaborate with 30 Saudi companies across different sectors.

The B2B meetings will specifically target sectors such as agriculture, mining, human resources, energy, chemicals and maritime. Moreover, discussions will extend to investment prospects in other sectors including refinery, IT, religious tourism, telecom, aviation, construction, water and power generation, he said.

The minister emphasised that the objective of these discussions was to identify investment opportunities that would generate employment and boost exports between the two countries. He also noted that local companies would present their business and investment proposals to their Saudi counterparts.

The minister expressed optimism that several companies would be able to finalise business and investment deals during the B2B session, fostering greater economic cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

Earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chaired a high-level review meeting on Friday regarding the progress of Saudi investment and projects in Pakistan.

The meeting was informed in detail about the visit of the prime minister to Saudi Arabia, as well as the arrival of the Saudi Arabian business delegation to Islamabad and the expected investment in the sectors.

Furthermore, the prime minister expressed his gratitude to the Saudi leadership for offering all kinds of support for Pakistan’s development and prosperity during his recent visit to Saudi Arabia. According to the prime minister, he hopes the meetings between Pakistani businessmen and the Saudi delegation will be fruitful.

Saudi Foreign Minister, Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, in his visit to Pakistan last month, said there was a great opportunity to increase investment, which was already on the table, through overcoming “hurdles.” “I believe there is (a) significant possibility of increasing the level of investment that is already planned,” he said then.