Turkish companies keen to invest in Industrial City

LAHORE: Turkish companies are keen to invest in Allama Iqbal Industrial City, a prioritised Special Economic Zone of Faisalabad Industrial Estate Development and Management Company (FIEDMC), under CPEC relations through exploring business potential and investment opportunities. A Turkish delegation Tuesday visited the FIEDMC camp office and both sides discussed issues for improvement in various sectors and projects.

FIEDMC Chairman Mian Kashif Ashfaq briefed the delegation and apprised them of the investment opportunities and incentive packages being offered to the investors. He said that cordial relations between Turkey and Pakistan should now be transformed into strong trade and economic ties and believed that both countries had immense potential to complement each other in terms of bilateral trade. "But for this to happen, better connectivity between the private sectors of both countries is needed,” he added.

He said that the development work on Special Economic Zones, including Allama Iqbal Industrial City of FIEDMC is speedily being done while government was providing attractive incentives to investors for investing in SEZs. He said it was right time for Turkish investors to explore joint ventures and investment in SEZs in gems and jewellery, pharmaceutical, marble, auto and health sectors.

Kashif Ashfaq said FIEDMC, following the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan, was extending maximum facilities to the foreign and local manufacturers and providing all services to businessmen under one roof for ease of doing business in the province.

He said all industries within the export processing zone would be exempted from tax for a period of 10 years and plants, machinery, raw material and other equipment would be imported duty-free.

He said that around Rs400 billion foreign and local investments would be injected into various projects, which clearly indicate that investors had reposed complete confidence in the present government. “Like many other countries, more than 25 Chinese companies had made agreements for investments in the industrial city,” he added.

The delegation members said that they considered Pakistan as their second destination and wanted to establish business partnerships in automobile, IT, home appliances, education and other fields.