Secretary SIFC reiterates commitment to investor facilitation, swift service delivery

Secretary Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) Jamil Ahmad Qureshi, reiterating the commitment to ensuring investor facilitation service delivery on Monday, urged all stakeholders to work together for stability, prosperity and dignity of Pakistan

KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 16th Feb, 2026) Secretary Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) Jamil Ahmad Qureshi, reiterating the commitment to ensuring investor facilitation service delivery on Monday, urged all stakeholders to work together for stability, prosperity and dignity of Pakistan.

He was addressing the launch event of the World Bank’s Business Ready Index 2025, themed as “Improving Pakistan’s Competitive Rating under B-Ready Index”. The event was attended by Special Assistant to the Chief Minister on Investment, Syed Qasim Naveed Qamar, Deputy Head of Mission, British Deputy High Commission in Karachi, Tom Burge, Secretary Sindh Investment Department, Zubair Channa, Senior officials of REMIT program, Board of Investment, and other relevant departments.

The SIFC secretary, speaking at the occasion, expressed commitment to managing investor services as measurable performance products, prioritizing the removal of bottlenecks, and keeping reforms rule-based and investor-neutral to lower discretion, promote transparency and a level playing field, especially for SMEs, which matter most for jobs.

He said that Pakistan is a young country with a growing workforce and it was an opportunity as well as a responsibility. The country needed to create 25 to 30 million jobs in the next decade to turn the youth bulge into an economic dividend, he said, adding this is our national imperative for stability, prosperity and dignity.

Referring to the improvement of Pakistan’s ranking in World Bank’s B-Ready Index, the secretary said that clear progress has been made in regulatory quality, public service delivery and operational efficiency, while country’s performance in key business indicators demonstrates that digitization and procedural simplification were yielding results and the financial services framework continues to evolve to better support capital inflows and access to finance.

These are not abstract gains; they have a material impact on the investment decisions, he said, adding that the national investment policy narrative translated into Aasan Karobar is now anchored in predictability, transparency and investor confidence.

“Our goal is clarity, speed and certainty delivered through rule of law and at the national level, we are moving from intent to delivery,” the secretary stated, saying that sequenced regulatory reform packages were designed to reduce bottlenecks and make the framework faster, clearer and more predictable, with implementation tracking and a clear message that reform must accelerate.

This aligns with the mandate of the Special Investment Facilitation Council and the Board of Investments, which were providing a one-window solution, one window facilitation to serious investors, coordinating across ministries and the provinces and helping fast-track credible projects while following constitutional and legal procedures and established government approval mechanisms.

He lauded active participation of the Sindh government in the reform journey by mapping and redesigning more than 32 registrations, licences and permits with the creation of a public repository of regulatory information. Sindh government's reform portal, coupled with Pakistan business portal, he said, will connect into one coherent experience for firms that import, manufacture and export.

Jamil Qureshi stressed to investors and the business community to utilize the digital tools and provide feedback for further improvement. He also urged development partners to continue aligning support to measurable delivery outcomes and services.

He stressed on the government departments to integrate their services, publish requirements and hold themself accountable to the given timelines and start treating every step and every unclear condition as a burden on investment.

He assured that SIFC will continue working with the government of Sindh and with our partners to ensure investor facilitation is not just a promise made on stage, but a service delivered reliably every day.

Deputy Head of Mission British Deputy High Commission in Karachi, Tom Burge, speaking at the occasion, termed the B-Ready launch event as an important moment in Pakistan's economic journey and an ambitious effort to revamp data, governance and regulation for unlocking the full potential of Pakistan's economy.

He commended the Government of Pakistan for streamlining regulatory and legislative reforms, which were reducing red tape, simplifying procedures and easing unnecessary compliance and said that these first three reform packages are expected to generate an economic impact of more than Rs 400 billion, with further gains as reforms continue.

Qasim Naveed said that the federal and Sindh government, along with international partners, were working together to improve the environment for business, industry and investment so that untapped potential of the country could be capitalized.

Sindh and Karachi in particular play a central role in Pakistan's economy and improvements in regulatory services here directly affect exports, competitiveness, and job creation across the country, he noted.