Saudi visit
There are plenty of expectations from the upcoming visit from the Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman (MBS). Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Wednesday announced that at least eight memoranda of understanding (MoUs) will be signed between Islamabad and Riyadh. Pakistan will formally propose to Saudi Arabia for initiation of a dialogue on preferential trade agreement (PTA) to promote bilateral trade and investment. And Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired a cabinet meeting on Thursday during which approval was granted for the signing of multiple agreements in the water and power sectors with the visiting Saudi delegation over the weekend.
The government has thoroughly planned out the details of the visit and are depending on the investment from our Saudi allies to provide the Pakistani economy the required boost. This is one of the steps that will certainly help Pakistan regain its ground on the international front, especially with the kind of holistic thinking the government is approaching this visit. Investment, finance, power, renewable energy, internal security, media, culture, and sports are some of the areas which will be brought to attention and these areas certainly require Pakistan’s attention and can help the country grow in the right direction. This is an achievement of the foreign policy of the current government that allies are investing once again in the country.
The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI) government came in with the promise of promoting exports of the region. This is why a preferential treatment will be sought in trade. With global trade witnessing a decline, it is important that Pakistan finds new avenues to launch its trade. This will create space for investment in the local industry and the quality of our products will improve over time. Another great outcome of this will be the decrease in the reliance on imported material.
Water and power require the utmost attention of our government. We have seen efforts on multiple fronts to not just create awareness but also launch initiatives which can help tackle these two problems. With the discussion of water and power on the agenda, it is likely that Pakistan will have sufficient investment to stabilise itself. With the current deficit, there are not many new avenues of revenue generation and the government is largely relying on investment. However, the government should be commended for its vision for the current visit. The only challenge now will be its execution and the display of diplomatic intelligence on all fronts.