Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb on Monday underscored the potential for boosting exports from Pakistan to Saudi Arabia, especially the skilled labour, as the kingdom's ambitious Vision 2030 drove up demand for such workers.
In an interview with Arab News during the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies, the minister noted that it aligned with Saudi Arabia's expanding workforce needs as the Gulf Arab nation progressed towards Vision 2030 objectives.
He emphasised that Saudi Arabia's influence in regional economic transformation was expanding and Pakistan also acknowledged its progress as a valuable model.
He was of the view that Riyadh's leadership in economic reforms offered important lessons to Pakistan, which had embarked on its own structural changes.
"Pakistan and the kingdom of Saudi Arabia have been longstanding partners, which is one of the strongest partnerships," Aurangzeb remarked. "As we go through our own structural reforms at this point in time, on the back of the macroeconomic stability that we have achieved, there's a lot to learn from Vision 2030."
The finance minister stated that Saudi Arabia was well ahead of its targets under Vision 2030, adding "there's so much to learn by Pakistan from our partners in Saudi Arabia."
The finance minister also highlighted the growing Saudi investment in Pakistan, particularly in the business-to-business sector. He pointed to recent developments such as Saudi Aramco's foray into the downstream petroleum industry and ongoing talks concerning government-to-government (G2G) agreements.
"We've already had a few investments coming through from Saudi Arabia in the business-to-business (B2B) space and then, of course, we have just seen Aramco coming into downstream, so these are all very, very good investments," Aurangzeb said.
"There are a number of G2G transactions, which are underway at this point in time, to be announced later in the year," he added.
"Meanwhile, we remain grateful for the support that we have received from Saudi Arabia, especially with respect to our IMF programme," he added, noting that the conference served as an important multilateral platform to discuss economic resilience and cooperation among emerging economies.
The minister also participated in a group discussion with finance, economic and development ministers of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries on the sidelines of the Emerging Markets Conference 2025 in AlUla.
The discussion focused on regional economic cooperation, financial policies and development strategies, with participating countries exchanging views on shared economic goals and sustainable growth opportunities.
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