Special economic zone for Japanese investors

ISLAMABAD  - Minister for Finance, Privatisation and Investment, Syed Naveed Qamar here on Wednesday assured the Japanese businessmen that Pakistan would ensure establishment of special Economic Zone for Japanese investors on priority basis.
The Economic Zone would be equipped with all the basic infrastructure, Naveed Qamar told a 15-member delegation on Pakistan-Japan Business Forum led by Makoto Kakebayashi during a meeting. Giving an overview of Pakistan’s economy, Syed Naveed Qamar said that the pressure on current account was due to oil and food imports, which was being curtailed through effective measures.
Efforts were underway to improve environment for the private sector and a list of the public sector entities being offered through strategic sales, for privatisation would be made public within next ten days time, he said. He said that the inflows of Foreign Direct Investment have been good, which reflected government’s facilitated portfolio-based investment planning and the tremendous interest by the investors in the power projects.
In order to curtail the smuggling of diesel to the neighboring countries the subsidies on certain petroleum products would be reduced gradually, he said adding that Pakistan workers remittances have gone up to US$ 56.5 billion as compared to the previous years figure of $ 5.5b.
The Finance Minister who is also Minister for Privatisation and Investment directed the Board of Investment (BOI) to work together with the Pakistan Japan Business Forum in conducting an in-depth study to find out the impediments being faced by the investors in general and the Japanese investors in particular.