ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan government has constituted a high-level committee to steer bilateral economic engagements and negotiations with Saudi Arabia, according to an official notification issued by the prime minister’s office on Sunday.
It is widely believed that Islamabad and Riyadh will sign a wide-ranging economic pact as early as this month, weeks after they inked a mutual defense pact, significantly strengthening a decades-old security partnership.
Pakistan’s alliance with Saudi Arabia — the site of Islam’s holiest sites — is rooted in shared faith, strategic interests and economic interdependence. Nearly 2.6 million Pakistanis live and work in Saudi Arabia and are also the largest source of remittances to the South Asian nation.
Pakistan has pushed in recent months to strengthen trade and investment ties with friendly nations, particularly the Kingdom, which has promised a $5 billion investment package that cash-strapped Pakistan desperately needs to shore up foreign reserves and fight a chronic balance of payment crisis.
According to the PM office notification, the committee will be co-chaired by Minister for Climate Change Musadik Masood Malik and Lt. Gen. Sarfraz Ahmad, National Coordinator of the Special Investment Facilitation Council, a civil-military body that oversees foreign investments.
“The Co-Chairs shall constitute Core/Negotiation Teams for negotiations with the Saudi counterparts. These teams shall be responsible for implementing and executing the assigned tasks on fast-track basis,” the notification said.
It further noted that all members and representatives would ensure availability from Oct. 6 onwards and that the PM has directed the SIFC to process members’ travel approvals “within one hour the same working day.”
The committee has been tasked to submit progress reports to the Prime Minister on a fortnightly basis, with the SIFC Secretariat providing administrative support.
Other members of the committee include Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Khan Cheema, Minister for Power Awais Leghari, Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal Khan, Minister for National Food Security & Research Rana Tanveer Hussain, Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan, Minister for Information Technology & Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja, and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Industries & Production Haroon Akhtar Khan, among others.
Bilateral trade between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia remains highly imbalanced, with Saudi exports to Pakistan vastly exceeding Pakistani exports in recent years. In 2023, Saudi Arabia’s exports to Pakistan were estimated at approximately $4.65 billion, while Pakistan’s exports to Saudi Arabia were much smaller, such as about $138 million in rice among other goods.
In 2024, Pakistan’s total exports to Saudi Arabia stood at around $734 million, with major items including cereals and meat, while Saudi exports to Pakistan included refined petroleum and chemical products.
Last October, Pakistani and Saudi business communities signed 34 MoUs worth about $2.8 billion during a visit by a Saudi investment delegation. It is unclear how many of those MoUs have been converted into active projects or contracts in a year.
