WASHINGTON: The Pakistan Embassy in the United States is engaging Pakistani Americans for their input on incentives that will attract them to invest in their motherland and contribute to an increased flow of foreign exchange.
The Embassy, in this regard, is approaching representatives of leading Pakistani community and holding seminars and meetings to discuss an amended draft “Incentive Package for Overseas and Non-Resident Pakistanis to Invest in Pakistan,” which has been prepared by the Board of Investment in consultation with stakeholders.
The draft Package include a whole range of incentive to overseas Pakistanis for making investments in Pakistan.
The comprehensive document will plug gaps in the previous policies and raise the level of trust and confidence of investors.
At a recent meeting, Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States, Jalil Abbas Jilani, highlighted the salient features of Pakistan’s investment framework.
He told the participants that as part of the government’s reform agenda, the government has been able to achieve political stability, control law and order and provide protection to investment.
The ambassador also mentioned the continued confidence being shown by the International Financial Institutions in Pakistan’s economic policies.
The ambassador said that years of stagnation, the PML-N government has put the economy on sound footing and the growth rate was on an upward trajectory.
He said the interest rates were an all-time low, inflation has declined sharply and foreign exchange reserves are increasing.
Senior officials of USAID also participated in the seminar and briefed the participants on USAID’s Pakistan Private Investment Initiative (PPII), that was launched by USAID in 2014.
By investing in Pakistani private businesses, the United States is supporting private sector growth, job creation and Pakistan’s role as a robust and fast-growing economic partner among its neighbors and within the global economy.
It was highlighted by the speakers that Pakistan offered equal opportunities to foreign and local investors. As an emerging economy, Pakistan offered great opportunities, which could be tapped by overseas Pakistanis desirous of making safe and profitable investments in their home country.
The leading Pakistan-community organizations are taking keen interest in the incentive package, praising the efforts by the embassy and the government to involve the main stakeholders in the exercise.
They observed that an inclusive decision-making approach by the Government would create a broad-based ownership by the community of the policy under preparation.
The community representatives exchanged views on the draft Incentive Package which will be communicated by the Embassy to the BOI.
Source: APP
