Peace yielding dividends for Pakistan, says PM Imran at WEF

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said that peace has started yielding dividends for Pakistan and repeated that Islamabad will not become part of any new conflict.

The PM passed the remarks while addressing a session titled “Pakistan Strategy Dialogue” at the World Economic Congress Center in Davos.

PM Imran asserted that Pakistan had learnt from both the Afghan jihad and the war against terrorism post 9/11, which had cost Pakistan heavily and inflicted a lot of damage to society.

The PM is currently on a three-day visit to Switzerland to attend the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum. Several meetings are scheduled with a wide range of corporate, business, technology and finance executives, as well as representatives of international financial institutions.

Talking about the benefits of choosing the path of peace, the premier pointed out that tourism in Pakistan has doubled.

“This is the first government that has disarmed terrorists and rehabilitated them. We are committed to rooting out terrorism,” the prime minister said.

“Pakistan has played its part in trying to avert the conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran,” the prime minister said, according to Radio Pakistan.

He noted that Pakistan is also “actively participating to facilitate the Afghan peace process.”

The PM said there is a chance of ceasefire in Afghanistan, which will help Pakistan reach Central Asian countries through an economic corridor.

Referring to the economic situation in Pakistan, the prime minister said his first year remained focused on stabilisation measures, which helped significantly cut the current account deficit.

This year, he said, "We want to grow our economy in order to provide jobs to our youth. We are doing everything possible to attract investment and incentivize the industries."

Referring to steps taken to remove hurdles in the way of investment, he said the World Bank had improved Pakistan's ranking for ease of doing business.

"Our foreign investment in one year jumped 200 per cent," he told the moderator.

The prime minister said Pakistan is hoping to attract investments in different sectors, including agriculture, minerals and information technology.

Highlighting the tourism potential of Pakistan, with reference to the centuries-old civilization indigenous to the region, the prime minister said Pakistan is one of the most undiscovered countries in the world.

He said Islamabad can strengthen the economy by tapping the true potential of tourism. He noted that several global tourism publications have declared Pakistan one of the most exciting tourism destinations.

He said tourism had doubled in one year as a result of the steps taken by the government.