Aurangzeb pitches bankable projects to attract Saudi, UK investments

April 19, 2024 (MLN): Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue on Friday assured that Pakistan would pitch bankable and investable projects to Saudi investors, highlighting the country's investment potential and favorable policies.

As per a press statement released by the Ministry of Finance, Aurangzeb, who is currently in Washington attending World Bank-IMF Spring meetings being held from April 15 to 20, met with Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Marshad, CEO of the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), to discuss potential avenues for enhanced economic cooperation between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

During the meeting, Finance Minister briefed Al-Marshad on his recent visit to Saudi Arabia as well as the recent visit of a high-level Saudi delegation to Pakistan.

Both sides reviewed and expressed satisfaction with the progress of ongoing development projects.

Finance Minister also discussed funding of ongoing projects, including Diamer Bhasha Dam and the N-25 highway from Karachi to Chaman.

Morover, in a separate meeting with Andrew Mitchell, UK’s Minister of State for Development and Africa, Aurangzeb acknowledged the long-standing relations between Pakistan and the UK rooted in shared history and mutual understanding.

He expressed gratitude for UK's support in areas such as education, health, financial management, and governance.

Finance Minister briefed him on the favorable economic indicators of the country and priority areas of taxation, energy sector and SOE reforms and highlighted government's efforts to create a conducive environment for foreign investment and economic growth, transparency, and inclusive participation.

He also invited British International Investment (BII) to invest in bankable projects in Pakistan and thanked UK Minister for planning a visit to Pakistan in August 2024.

Furthermore, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb also met with Citibank officials.

He briefed them on the positive economic indicators including buoyant stock market, renewed interest of foreign buyers and institutional flows on the back of Stand-by Arrangement (SBA) signed with IMF.

He informed them that Pakistan had successfully repaid Eurobond on time.

He further apprised them that government had initiated discussions with IMF on a larger and extended program and it was fully committed to carrying out both short-term and long-term reforms in the areas of taxation, energy sector overhaul and SOE reforms.

As part of his media engagements, Finance Minister gave media interviews to Reuters and China Global Television Network (CGTN).

Finance Minister is leading Pakistan’s delegation in the IMF / World Bank’s 2024 Spring Meetings being held in Washington DC.

It is pertinent to mention here that Finance Minister is leading Pakistan’s delegation in the IMF / World Bank’s 2024 Spring Meetings being held in Washington DC.

Copyright Mettis Link News