Pakistan’s ambition to become a trillion-dollar economy can only be achieved through aligned policy, capital, industry and institutions, with fragmented progress unable to deliver sustainable growth, said Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh while speaking at the Pakistan Leadership Conversation.
The minister underscored collective acceleration, export-led growth, and investor-friendly reforms as critical pillars for Pakistan’s economic transformation, drawing parallels with China’s development journey and its focus on value-added exports. He said Pakistan can replicate this success by upgrading its production base, improving quality standards, and moving up the global value chain.
Highlighting the importance of human capital, he emphasized that productivity enhancement—rather than headline GDP growth—must guide Pakistan’s economic strategy, with a strong focus on technology adoption, managerial capacity building, and SME formalisation to strengthen competitiveness.
On digital transformation, the minister noted that technologies such as artificial intelligence and fintech can help Pakistan leapfrog economically, provided adoption scales beyond pilot projects into large platforms. He also pointed to improving investor sentiment, citing rising stock market performance as a sign of growing confidence in Pakistan’s economic direction.
Reaffirming the government’s reform agenda, he stated that investor-friendly policies are being implemented to improve the ease of doing business and ensure regulatory predictability. He informed investors that special economic zones offer a ten-year income tax exemption, with around 6,000 acres of land available near Port Qasim, and highlighted the Business Facilitation Centre’s one-window support for investors.
He concluded by reiterating the Board of Investment’s commitment to facilitating foreign investors and positioning Pakistan as a competitive, reliable, and future-ready investment destination.
