UK envoy sees economic stability

Believes British businesses will make new investment decisions after elections

KARACHI:

British High Commissioner to Pakistan Jane Marriott has said that Pakistan will see general elections and economic stability in the next six months and she strongly believes the “stability and continuity” will encourage UK businesses to make new investment decisions after March 2024 onwards.

Speaking at a ceremony held at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday to mark the new investment made by Haleon Pakistan in the healthcare sector, she said “after the elections, I hope...once you have (economic) stability, continuity you will see the pipeline of interest in British businesses (for new investment decisions for Pakistan).”

“Not in the six months, but I hope in the six months after that (polls and economic stabilisation).”

Haleon, the British pharma company, formerly GSK Consumer Healthcare, announced new investment of $12 million (over Rs4 billion) in Pakistan to expand production lines for Panadol and CaC1000, and export them to the Middle East, Far East and African countries.

Marriott said Pakistan’s tech sector had particularly a lot of potential to attract new investment next year. “The UK specialises in services in technology and life sciences.”

She said that of course the economic relationship was at the heart of Pakistani-UK experience and that’s why “she is delighted to be here to celebrate Haleon’s investment”.

“The UK is committed to strengthening economic ties between our two countries, building that long-term trading partnership and promoting Pakistan as an attractive market for British firms.”

Pakistan and the UK have got a very healthy, growing trade relationship and total trade between the two countries stands at 4.4 billion pounds. “But this undershoots our potential. I want to build on this base. I want to combine world-leading British expertise and financing with Pakistani vision, capability and skills, as exemplified by Haleon’s investment,” she said.

Haleon’s investment is proof of both the resilience and strength of opportunities in Pakistan’s economy. The investment would expand production capabilities and develop product lines to meet the growing healthcare demand of Pakistani people whilst providing a “vital export link and foreign revenue for the country”, the high commissioner said.

She said about 200 British companies were operating and investing in Pakistan and there were many other foreign private companies.

These businesses always talk to each other and they talk to their headquarters about global priorities and this means two things.

Firstly, the existing investors are Pakistan’s best ambassadors to attract new investment. “If they can report that Pakistan is a stable country where the government listens to and acts on their concerns as the government did for Haleon, they can tell that to other businesses.”

Governments can do as much as they want to promote investment into their country but in the UK’s experience there’s no substitute for the word of mouth, the kind of positive publicity from existing investors, Marriott said.

And secondly, this investment shows that the existing ambassadors can also be Pakistan’s best new investors. Many people here are excited about the long-term opportunities and with some of the changes, some of the recent economic reforms, the increased ability to remit finances, it feels as though there is a turning point here with economic decision-making that can turbo charge Pakistan both internally, regionally and globally “if those economic reforms are sustained and delivered upon”.

“It is my firm belief that Pakistan can continue to improve its investment environment and there is no limit therefore to the number of investments that UK investors can bring.”

PSX Managing Director and CEO Farrukh Khan said the high commissioner’s visit to the bourse would serve as a confidence-building measure for UK-based companies in Pakistan and would send a positive message to the listed companies to enhance business and trade with companies in the UK.

Haleon Pakistan CEO and General Manager Farhan Haroon said the new investment was made to bring latest technology to Pakistan and enhance the production of Panadol to 8 billion tablets per annum.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 17^th, 2023.

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