Aurangzeb speaks to investors

WASHINGTON: Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb continued his engagements on the fourth day of his visit to Washington DC to participate in the Annual Meetings 2024 of the World Bank Group and IMF.

Finance Minister attended a series of investor fora organized by the Citibank, Standard Chartered and JP Morgan. He briefed investors about the performance of the economy for the last fiscal year and expressed satisfaction that all economic indicators were moving in the right direction.

He highlighted important reforms in the taxation, energy, SOES, privatization and right-sizing of the government and especially talked about the role of the provincial governments in increasing tax-to-GDP ratio and the National Fiscal Pact signed by the Federal Government.

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He also touched on the reforms being carried out in the FBR in the areas of people, process and technology and addressed questions from the investors regarding the Sovereign Wealth Fund, Special Economic Zones and Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) being negotiated with Chinese IPPs.

Finance Minister held a meeting with President of the Islamic Development Bank, Dr. Muhammad Sulaiman Al Jasser. He acknowledged ISDB’s role as a reliable partner in Pakistan’s progress and appreciated its financing in diverse sectors such as energy, transportation, education and health. He especially talked about the visit of Saudi Minister for Investment to Pakistan for b2b engagements with the private sector.

He lauded IsDB’s investment in Mohmand dam, along with other members of the Arab Coordination Group which could serve as the template for co financing of similar and even bigger projects in future.

Finance Minister had a luncheon meeting with the leadership and members of the US-Pakistan Business Council (USPBC). He acknowledged USPBC’s contributions in deepening trade and investment ties between Pakistan and the United States.

He informed the participants that presence of more than 80 US enterprises in Pakistan was a testimony to the profit potential of 240 million strong market. He invited US firms to benefit from the Government’s investment-friendly policies and one-window facility provided by the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC).