BoI board gets new look as cabinet approves composition

ISLAMABAD: The government announced on Tuesday the formation of a new Board of Investment (BoI), comprising 25 members from both the private and public sectors, to attract foreign and domestic investment.

The decision was approved by the federal cabinet through a circulating summary, according to a statement from the BoI.

The Pakistan Business Council (PBC), a pan-sectoral business advocacy body composed of over a hundred companies, including multinationals, however criticised the composition and size of the newly constituted BOI. “With very few exceptions, neither the composition, nor the size of the BOI Board is appropriate. With prospects of investment bleak, this sort of board will certainly not help restore investor confidence,: the PBC said in a tweet.

Meanwhile, the BoI said the prime minister will be the president of the board, which will include federal ministers of finance, commerce, foreign affairs, industries, energy, and information technology, as well as the central bank governor and the tax chief.

The private sector representatives will include prominent businessmen and entrepreneurs from various sectors such as pharmaceuticals, textiles, banking, fintech, and law.

Thirteen members from the private sector will sit on the board, complemented by a dozen members from the public sector. The government-side representation will include the federal ministers of finance and revenue, commerce, foreign affairs, industries and production, energy, and information technology and communication. Further members from the government sector will be the governor of the State Bank, the chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), the chairman of the BoI, and the secretary of the BoI.

Among the private sector representatives are notable figures such as Faisal Jawad of Din Group, Muhammad Imran Masood from Integrator (Pvt) Ltd, Asad Saleem Rehman of Saleem Group of Industries, Khalid Mehmood from Getz Pharma Pvt. Ltd, and Syed Muhammad Talib Rizvi, director/COO of Banking and Fintech.

Additionally, Muhammad Yawar Irfan Khan, chairman of Irfan Group of Companies, Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali Anjum, chairman of S.M Group of Industries, and Engr. Haris Naeem, CEO of HTMA (Pvt) Ltd, are part of the private sector delegation. Syed Hasnain Ibrahim Kazmi, advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, and Malik Muhammad Awais Khalid from Awais Khalid & Associates are also among the private sector appointees. Notably, Ayla Majid, founder and CEO of Planetive Pakistan, assumes her position as a member of the BoI board following her departure from the chairperson role at the GHPL board upon completing her tenure.

Special Assistant to the Chief Minister of Sindh on Investment and PPP projects, Syed Qassim Naveed Qamar, has also been designated as a private sector member.