ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister of Pakistan Muhammad Nawaz Sharif has appointed Javed Malik as Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for Overseas, Investment & Trade and designated him to the rank of Ambassador of Pakistan, says a press release. As Pakistan’s Special Envoy he would have a global mandate to represent the country internationally and highlight the business, trade and investment opportunities in Pakistan. He would also reach out to the millions of Pakistanis living around the world in an effort to encourage them and create opportunities for them to play an active and meaningful role in Pakistan’s economic development in line with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s vision to build a progressive, self-reliant and prosperous Pakistan. His mandate would enable him to advise and assist the prime minister and the government of Pakistan on foreign investment & trade and overseas matters. This is Ambassador Javed Malik’s second diplomatic appointment. Earlier he served as Pakistan’s Ambassador at Large between 2008-2011 during which time he was engaged in several trade, cultural and public diplomacy initiatives in Middle East and Europe. He launched Pakistan International Council as well as the Overseas Pakistanis Forum in an effort to institutionalize his efforts. He also played an active role in the formation stages of Friends of Democratic Pakistan (FoDP) and represented Pakistan at both the official and expert level meetings that held in Abu Dhabi. Coincidently, during these interactions the newly appointed Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhary was also present as he was leading the foreign office delegation to the forum. Ambassador Javed Malik was also part of the foreign minister’s team which coordinated the Public Private Partnership Conference held in Dubai in 2009 which was jointly chaired by foreign ministers of UAE and Pakistan. UAE Ministers Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Sheikh Lubna Bint Khalid Al Qasimi were present at the conference in addition to deputy prime minister of Turkey and other delegations from 30 countries. In an effort to promote closer business and trade relations between Pakistan and UAE, Ambassador Javed Malik launched several initiatives and led the effort to organize and host the first Pakistan-UAE Business and Investment Conference 2010 in which over 700 top businessmen from both countries took part. Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif who was leading a delegation of 100 CEOs from Pakistan chaired this conference. The conference ushered in various facets of bilateral cooperation, which led to signing of MOUs exceeding a billion US dollars. Moreover, as an active advocate for Overseas Pakistanis, Ambassador Malik also organized and hosted the Overseas Pakistanis Business & Professionals Forum 2012. The Forum held its first session in Dubai, which was personally chaired by Mian Nawaz Sharif in which Pakistanis from different walks of life resident in UAE and across the GCC took part. A similar convention for Pakistanis living in Europe was also held in Germany in which Ambassador Malik accompanied the prime minister. Javed Malik is a prominent and distinguished Pakistani with a strong network of contacts in Middle East and Europe. He has been associated with various international organizations and served as executive director of the UK based World Forum. He is also the president of the prestigious Diplomat Business Club based in UAE and the publisher of the only diplomatic magazine in UAE. Prior to joining government in 2008, he was widely known for his work in television where he hosted a popular international affairs talk show and also wrote for prominent publications around the world. He also writes for Jang Group publications. In addition to media, Malik is also entrepreneur and a corporate lawyer with business interests in London and Dubai. While thanking the prime minister, Ambassador Javed Malik said that “it is a great honour for me to represent my country, and I thank the prime minister for entrusting me with this responsibility. In line with prime minister’s policy to expand trade and attract investment to put Pakistan on the road to economic stability, we have prepared a comprehensive strategy to engage with the international community and highlight the abundance of business, trade and investment opportunities in Pakistan. Secondly, I would also be focusing on the Overseas Pakistanis living across the world who are keen to play a meaningful role in Pakistan’s economic recovery in line with prime minister’s vision. He further added, “I can tell you from personal experience that Nawaz Sharif’s election as Prime Minister has sent a very positive signal to the business community around the world. They are encouraged to see a transparent government with zero tolerance for corruption now in office in Pakistan, and this has restored investor confidence and we have been contacted by various businessmen and investors from the international and overseas Pakistani community who see good opportunities in Pakistan and see it as a destination for their investments”. Speaking about the challenges in his role, he said: Yes of course there are challenges but let me tell you that the opportunities are bigger than the challenges, and businessmen with foresight and vision can see beyond these issues and would take a long-term view and the future is glowing with opportunities in Pakistan for the right kind of business. I led two business delegations to Pakistan last year and more are in the pipeline in this New Year Speaking about his immediate roadmap, Ambassador Javed Malik said, “I would be meeting the ministers and officials at the Foreign, Commerce and Overseas Pakistanis Ministries, in addition to the Board of Investments to seek their guidance in the coming days so that the initiatives that we launch are well coordinated and are viewed as a team effort to serve our country. In the first phase of my work, I will focus on UAE and the wider Gulf region”. “We need to expand the level of interaction between our business communities and create win-win opportunities to facilitate business, trade and investment relations and a series of initiatives would be launched in this regard. Pakistan embassies have been directed by the prime minister to divert their focus on trade and economic diplomacy too because in modern day diplomacy trade is the pivot around which bilateral relations between countries can truly flourish”, he added. Ambassador Javed Malik further said, “I have accepted this position purely out of patriotism and would not be taking any salary from the government of Pakistan. For me this is an opportunity to serve the country of my birth under the leadership of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and work will be purely motivated by patriotism in the spirit of public service”.
