Sardar Tahir Mehmood highlights Pakistan’s vast trade and investment potential
Islamabad : Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) organized a Roundtable Conference of Senior Diplomats and Commercial Counsellors, aimed at strengthening economic diplomacy and enhancing trade and investment cooperation between Pakistan and the international business community.
Addressing the forum, ICCI President Sardar Tahir Mehmood highlighted Pakistan’s vast trade and investment potential by projecting an increasingly business-friendly environment driven by economic reforms, improved ease of doing business, and strong private-sector participation. He stated that Pakistan, and Islamabad in particular, offers a secure and attractive ecosystem for foreign investors, with growing opportunities across multiple sectors.
He emphasized that ICCI has been playing a proactive role in promoting exports and investment by facilitating B2B linkages, organizing international trade delegations, encouraging joint ventures, engaging policymakers for regulatory simplification, and providing market intelligence to exporters and investors. He noted that ICCI remains committed to acting as a bridge between the government, diplomatic missions, and the business community to translate opportunities into tangible economic outcomes.
Sardar Tahir Mehmood underlined the importance of Commercial Counsellors and Economic Attachés in facilitating market access, guiding businesses on regulatory frameworks, and identifying emerging opportunities. He said that structured and continuous engagement with diplomatic missions would help Pakistani businesses integrate into global value chains and diversify export markets. He briefly referred to the Islamabad Sister Cities Initiative as one of the platforms supporting ICCI’s broader economic diplomacy efforts.
Additional Secretary, Prime Minister’s Office, Zulfiqar Ali, in his address, highlighted the Prime Minister’s initiatives for promoting trade, investment, and exports. Director General Trade Policies, Ministry of Commerce, Shafeeq Ahmed Shehzad, informed participants that comprehensive measures are being undertaken to improve ease of doing business, including tariff rationalization and policy reforms.
*Ambassador of Yemen Mohammed Motahar Alshabi, Economic Counsellors Embassy of Japan, Kazakhstan, Head of Chancery Malaysian High Commission, Second Secretary Embassy of Vietnam, Deputy head of Mission Embassy of Azerbaijan, Commercial Counsellors Embassy of Belarus, Bosnia Minister Counsellor Embassy of Sri Lanka, First Secretary Embassy of Iran, Researcher from Embassy of South Korea, Deputy Head of Mission Embassy of Tunisia, and representative from Kyrgyzstan appreciated ICCI’s initiative and termed Pakistan a promising destination for trade and investment. They expressed their countries’ interest in joint ventures and enhancing bilateral trade volumes.*
In his vote of thanks, former ICCI President and Convener ICCI Standing Committee on Diplomatic Affairs Zafar Bakhtawari emphasized the importance of connectivity and sustained institutional engagement for promoting multifaceted economic relations among countries. He also appreciated the participation of diplomatic missions and reaffirmed ICCI’s commitment to serving as a platform for economic collaboration.
Senior Vice President ICCI Tahir Ayub who conducted the proceedings as Master of the ceremony, provided insightful references to the historical , geographical and economic significance of the participating countries, while Convener Islamabad Cities Initiative Sajid Iqbal presented the concept note of the roundtable.
The conference was also attended by ICCI Vice President Irfan Chaudhry, Executive Committee members and a large number of representatives from the trade and industrial community, who termed the event a significant step toward strengthening Pakistan’s economic diplomacy and international business engagement.
Sohail Majeed is a Special Correspondent at The Diplomatic Insight. He has twelve plus years of experience in journalism & reporting. He covers International Affairs, Diplomacy, UN, Sports, Climate Change, Economy, Technology, and Health.
