PM Shehbaz Invites US Firms to Invest in Pakistan’s Key Sectors

• The prime minister urged American companies to explore opportunities in agriculture, minerals, technology, energy and ports.
• He outlined economic reforms and called for stronger trade and investment ties with the United States.
• Representatives of major US companies discussed their existing business interests and plans in Pakistan.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif invited American companies to expand their investments in Pakistan during a meeting with a joint delegation of the Business Council for International Understanding (BCIU) and the US-Pakistan Business Council (USPBC) in New York on Friday.

The meeting took place on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly. Shehbaz said improved relations between Pakistan and the United States should lead to greater trade and investment, describing the two business councils as an important link between Islamabad and Washington.

The prime minister pointed to opportunities in agriculture, mining and minerals, information technology, energy, ports and shipping, and the government’s privatisation programme. He said Pakistan was working to create a more favourable business climate through structural reforms, including economic digitisation, revenue administration changes and wider use of e-governance.

Shehbaz said the economy had stabilised and was moving towards growth, although the ongoing Gulf crisis had created challenges. He also spoke about Pakistan’s efforts to support regional peace initiatives, saying lasting stability was important for business and investment.

In agriculture, he said modern machinery, including harvesters, could help raise yields per acre, improve efficiency and lower production costs. He described Pakistan’s mineral resources as another area with significant investment potential.

The prime minister said Pakistan’s young population offered opportunities in information technology and artificial intelligence. He added that the government was expanding vocational and skills training to help young people find productive employment. He also invited investment in oil, petroleum, gas, ports and shipping.

Discussing privatisation, Shehbaz said Pakistan International Airlines had been privatised and expressed confidence that its new Pakistani owners would improve its performance. He said a bank had also been privatised and that the government was accelerating work on privatising power distribution companies. He described the government’s role as facilitating private enterprise and protecting investment.

USPBC President Esperanza Jelalian thanked the prime minister for his engagement with US businesses and briefed him on US Chamber of Commerce plans to promote investment opportunities in Pakistan. BCIU President Peter Tichansky said member companies were interested in expanding existing investments and exploring new partnerships. Both councils pledged to remain engaged with Pakistan’s government and private sector.

Representatives of Boeing, Abbott, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, Resecurity, Mastercard, Nvidia, ETS Capital, TRG International, Archer Daniels Midland Company, Northshore Medical Lab, Reckitt, Visa and Excelerate Energy attended the meeting. They briefed the prime minister on their business interests and plans in Pakistan.

Shehbaz was accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, the finance and defence ministers, Special Assistant Tariq Fatemi, PVARA Chairman Bilal bin Saqib, Pakistan’s UN representative Asim Iftikhar and Ambassador to the United States Rizwan Ahmed Sheikh.