PBF calls for bold budget measures to tap blue economy potential

ISLAMABAD, Jun 06 (APP):Chief Organizer of the Pakistan Business Forum (PBF), Ahmad Jawad Saturday said that the Federal Budget 2026-27 was providing a critical opportunity for Pakistan to identify new engines of sustainable economic growth.

As policymakers, grapple with the challenge of increasing exports, attracting investment, creating jobs and strengthening foreign exchange reserves without imposing additional burdens on businesses and citizens. The country’s vast Blue Economy with a annual potential of 15 billion dollars remained one of the most under utilized assets capable of transforming Pakistan’s economic future, he said.

He reclaimed that for decades, successive governments had relied on traditional sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, services and taxation reforms to steer economic growth. While these sectors remain important, Pakistan must now broaden its economic vision and embrace a largely untapped frontier capable of delivering long-term prosperity—the Blue Economy, he added.

Jawad said the upcoming June 10th budget should mark the beginning of a national maritime transformation. It must contain dedicated allocations, incentives, and policy measures aimed at unlocking the enormous potential of Pakistan’s maritime resources.

At the same time, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs (MoMA) must emerge as a leading economic ministry by aggressively promoting investment opportunities in Pakistan’s maritime sector at home and abroad, he added.

He said that the reality is simple,  Pakistan has spent decades looking inward, while much of the world’s economic growth is increasingly linked to oceans, ports, shipping, fisheries, coastal tourism, renewable energy, and maritime logistics.

“Pakistan possessed all the ingredients needed to become a regional maritime economy. What has been missing is vision, investment, and execution”, he added.

According to international estimates, Jawad briefed that the global Blue Economy was generating more than $2.5 trillion annually and supports hundreds of millions of jobs worldwide. If the oceans were treated as a national economy, they would rank among the world’s largest economic systems.

Jawad said that Pakistan’s share of this opportunity remained disappointingly small.

He said that our country have a coastline of approximately 1,050 kilometres along the Arabian Sea and possessed an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covering nearly 240,000 square kilometres. Following the approval of Pakistan’s extended continental shelf by the United Nations, the country’s maritime jurisdiction expanded to almost 290,000 square kilometres—an area larger than the total landmass of many countries.

This vast maritime territory contained fisheries, mineral resources, tourism destinations, logistics opportunities, renewable energy potential, and shipping routes that remain significantly under utilised.

Unfortunately, Pakistan’s Blue Economy contributes only a fraction of its true potential to national GDP.

Jawad said that the upcoming federal budget must therefore recognize the Blue Economy not as a peripheral sector but as a strategic pillar of economic development.

One of the most promising segments is fisheries and aquaculture.

Pakistan’s coastal waters are rich in commercially valuable fish species, including tuna, shrimp, lobster, crab, mackerel, and sardines. Yet annual seafood exports remain far below their potential, Jawad said.

The countries with smaller coastlines have developed billion-dollar seafood industries through modern processing facilities, cold-chain systems, advanced fishing fleets, and international quality certifications.

He said that the June 10 budget should allocate funds for modern fish harbours, seafood processing zones, cold storage facilities, testing laboratories, and export certification centres. Such investments would significantly improve product quality and enable exporters to access premium markets in Europe, East Asia, the Gulf, and North America.

Equally important is the development of aquaculture.

Globally, aquaculture now accounts for more than half of all seafood consumed by humans. Pakistan’s coastal and inland waters provide enormous opportunities for fish farming and shrimp cultivation. Yet investment in this sector remains limited.

He suggested that the government should establish a dedicated Blue Economy Development Fund that provides concessional financing to investors in fisheries, aquaculture, seafood processing, and related industries.

Another major area deserving attention is maritime logistics and shipping.

Nearly 95 percent of Pakistan’s international trade volume moves through maritime routes. Karachi Port, Port Qasim, and Gwadar collectively handle the lifeline of Pakistan’s imports and exports.

However, despite being heavily dependent on maritime trade, Pakistan continues to rely extensively on foreign shipping lines.

This results in substantial foreign exchange outflows every year, he added.

The upcoming budget should include incentives for expanding Pakistan’s merchant fleet, encouraging ship ownership, promoting ship leasing, and supporting local shipbuilding and ship repair industries.

The shipbuilding sector alone can generate thousands of skilled jobs while creating a domestic industrial ecosystem involving steel, engineering, electronics, fabrication, and logistics.

He gave example that countries such as South Korea, Singapore, China, and Türkiye transformed their maritime sectors into powerful economic engines through targeted government support and long-term policy consistency.

Pakistan must learn from these precedents.

The strategic importance of Gwadar Port cannot be overstated.

While Gwadar has often been discussed from a geopolitical perspective, it must now be viewed through an economic lens.

The city possessed the potential to become a regional logistics, warehousing, transshipment, and industrial hub connecting South Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East, and Western China.

He also suggested that the June 10 budget should allocate resources for road connectivity, industrial zones, logistics infrastructure, water supply projects, digital connectivity, and vocational training programmes linked specifically to Gwadar’s economic development.

Investors seek certainty and infrastructure. Without both, opportunities remain unrealised.

The Ministry of Maritime Affairs must therefore adopt a far more proactive role in marketing Gwadar and Pakistan’s broader maritime economy to global investors.

He said that rather than waiting for investors to come, the Ministry should actively organize international roadshows, investment conferences, business delegations, and maritime investment forums across the Gulf region, Europe, East Asia, and North America.

Pakistan’s maritime opportunities should be presented with the same energy and professionalism that successful investment destinations employ.

Special investment packages should be developed for fisheries, port services, logistics, warehousing, coastal tourism, renewable energy, and marine technology sectors.

The Blue Economy also offers a remarkable opportunity for employment generation.

Pakistan’s youth population continues to grow, creating immense pressure on the labour market.

Maritime industries can absorb thousands of skilled and semi-skilled workers in fishing, logistics, shipping, tourism, engineering, transportation, shipbuilding, port operations, hospitality, and marine services.

Every investment made in maritime infrastructure creates a ripple effect across multiple sectors of the economy.

This employment dimension alone justifies dedicated budgetary support.

Coastal tourism is another sleeping giant.

Pakistan’s coastline features some of the most spectacular yet underdeveloped tourist destinations in the region, including Kund Malir, Ormara, Pasni, Astola Island, Jiwani, and Gwadar.

International experience demonstrates that sustainable coastal tourism can generate significant economic activity while supporting local communities.

He also stressed that the June 10 budget should provide funding for tourism infrastructure, environmental protection measures, hospitality training programmes, coastal road networks, and investor facilitation mechanisms.

Private sector participation should be encouraged through tax incentives and public-private partnership models.

Environmental sustainability must remain at the centre of Blue Economy development.

Economic growth cannot come at the cost of marine ecosystems.

Illegal fishing, marine pollution, coastal degradation, and climate-related risks threaten the long-term viability of maritime resources.

Therefore, budget allocations should also support marine conservation programmes, scientific research, fisheries management systems, and environmental monitoring initiatives.

Protecting marine resources is not an environmental luxury; it is an economic necessity. Pakistan must also accelerate exploration of offshore energy resources.

The country’s coastal region possesses potential for offshore wind projects, tidal energy generation, and other forms of marine renewable energy.

At a time when energy security remains a national concern, investment in coastal renewable energy projects can diversify Pakistan’s energy mix and reduce dependence on imported fuels.

Dedicated budgetary allocations for feasibility studies, pilot projects, and private-sector participation can help unlock this opportunity.

Many countries have successfully developed marine biotechnology industries based on pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, nutraceuticals, and industrial applications derived from marine organisms.

Pakistan’s universities and research institutions should receive targeted funding to explore marine sciences and blue innovation technologies.

A modern Blue Economy cannot thrive without knowledge, research, and innovation.

The Pakistan Business Forum believes that the June 10 budget may also include the following twelve points immediate measures: 1) Establish a National Blue Economy Development Fund with an initial allocation of Rs 30 bn. 2) Allocate dedicated resources for fisheries modernization. 3) Introduce tax incentives for maritime investors. 4) Support shipbuilding and ship repair industries. 5) Expand seafood processing infrastructure. 6) Develop coastal tourism zones. 7) Accelerate Gwadar economic development projects. 8) Promote offshore renewable energy initiatives. 9) Strengthen marine conservation programmes. 10) Launch a National Maritime Investment Promotion Strategy. 11) Facilitate public-private partnerships in maritime sectors. 12) Increase funding for maritime education and research.

Most importantly, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs (MOMA) must become the lead institution driving this agenda.

For too long, maritime development has remained overshadowed by other economic priorities.

That approach must change. MOMA should establish a dedicated investor facilitation unit tasked with identifying opportunities, preparing bankable projects, engaging international investors, and coordinating with provincial governments and private-sector stakeholders.

MOMA should also work closely with the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), Board of Investment, chambers of commerce, and business organizations to promote Pakistan’s maritime economy globally.

The objective should be clear: attract billions of dollars in new investment over the next decade.

The world is increasingly turning toward oceans as engines of economic growth.

Pakistan cannot remain a spectator. Our geographic location, coastline, ports, maritime resources, and strategic connectivity provide advantages that many countries would envy.

The challenge is not a lack of potential. The challenge is converting potential into policy, policy into investment, and investment into economic growth.

The June 10 Federal Budget presents a historic opportunity to begin this transformation.

The Blue Economy should not be treated as a side note in budget documents. It should be recognized as a national economic priority capable of generating exports, employment, foreign investment, regional connectivity, and sustainable growth.

Pakistan’s future prosperity will not be built solely on what lies beneath our soil. It will increasingly depend on what lies beyond our shores.

“The sea has always been one of Pakistan’s greatest assets”. The time has come to invest in it; said Jawad.