ISLAMABAD, Oct 07 (APP): The government is committed to protect and encourage foreign investments and Board of Investment (BOI) has assured to facilitate the investors and help them execute their investments.
The BOI organized an investment promotion seminar to apprise the potential foreign investors on investment policies and opportunities in Pakistan.
The Secretary Board of Investment (BOI), Fareena Mazhar stated that economic uplift was an area of priority of the incumbent government and Pakistan, under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan had been undergoing bold economic reforms which had helped the country improve significantly in all sectors of economy, said a press release issued by BOI here.
Discussing the investment climate of the country, Fareena elaborated that recent surveys indicated increased confidence of foreign and local investors due to liberal trade and investment policies of the government and that Pakistan was home to more than 1000 foreign companies.
The secretary shared that vision 2025 maps Pakistan to join the top 25 economies in the world leading to upper middle income country status by 2025 where the economy is targeted to grow over 8 percent between 2018 and 2025 while maintaining single digit inflation.
She also informed that Price waterhouseCoopers ranked Pakistan at No 20 in its projected list of 32 most powerful economies of the world in 2030.
Further apprising the audience about the initiatives undertaken by the government to facilitate investors, she mentioned the 22 Special Economic Zones (SEZs) that are designed to become high-end commercial, technology and manufacturing hubs, four of which are equipped with state-of-the-art facilities and business ecosystems and are ready for investment as Early Harvest projects.
Fareena specifically mentioned the Electronic Vehicle Policy recently introduced by the government which offered lucrative set of incentives for various categories of EVs.
She shared that the major rationale for providing generous incentives and encouraging investments in EV Technologies in Pakistan is the ability of such technologies in curtailing the oil import bill which was currently the largest import commodity being imported into Pakistan.
Underlining some of the incentives in Electronic Vehicle (EV) category, she mentioned reduced custom duty on EV specific parts, reduced rate of value added tax and sales tax as well as custom duties on import of EVs.
Underscoring the strategic location of the country, the Secretary said that Pakistan was a promising regional hub and an important destination for trade and investment. She further added that a wide-based population pyramid and an expanding middle-class further make it a robust consumer market for foreign investors.
The secretary appreciated the UAE government for organizing the Dubai Expo 2020 which is the largest meeting place offering countless opportunities for all to interact and explore new vistas of mutual cooperation including trade and investment opportunities.
