Contributions of Ch Salik Hussain as Minister
Mr. Chaudhry Salik Hussain is a Pakistani politician who has been a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan since October 2018. He is the son of former Prime Minister Chaudhry Shujat Hussain. He was elected to the National Assembly of Pakistan as a candidate of the Pakistan Muslim League from Constituency NA-65 (Chakwal-II) in a by-election held on 14 October 2018. On April 22, 2022, he was appointed as Federal Minister without a portfolio in the federal cabinet of Shehbaz Sharif. On 12 May, he was given the portfolio as the Federal Minister of the Board of Investment & Special Initiatives. He was made responsible for Chinese and other foreign direct investment and special measures.
China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) General Manager met Mr. Liu Ming. Mr. Asad Rehman Gilani, Secretary, Board of Investment, and Mr. Khashiur Rehman also participated in the meeting. CRBC gave a detailed presentation on the infrastructure and investment projects in Pakistan, particularly the Rashkai Special Economic Zone, the potential of the CPEC framework, and the first plan for land investment and development under the auspices of SEZs, and CPEC. The framework included promoting the Karachi Coastal Comprehensive Development Zone. CRBC also presented the progress of the latest investment projects initiated and pursued by CRBC and will explore further partnership opportunities in Pakistan. The Federal Minister appreciated CRBC’s investment efforts and ensured full facilitation by the BOI team.
Mr. Chaudhry Salik Hussain met with the Ambassador of Denmark to Pakistan, Mrs. Lise Roghom. Secretary Board of Investment Mr. Asad Rehman Gilani and Mr. Jameel Qureshi, Director General Investment Promotion Board of Investment were also part of the meeting.
He also met Mr. Amir Chaghatai, Country Representative and Financial Advisor of CENTCO and Chinese SOE Consortium. CENTCO is a consortium of eight Chinese state-owned enterprises and Pakistani partners that plans to set up Gwadar Industrial City on 22,600 acres of land on the banks of the Pisani, 85 km east of Gwadar Port. Phase 1 of the Petrochemical Industrial Park will have 10 industrial units with an investment of USD 7 billion to be implemented on a build-it-yourself basis. The project is expected to generate a gross turnover of over US$15 billion per year and provide 3,000 jobs. It will be the base for the development of a modern Gwadar industrial city that will feature petrochemical, steel, and equipment manufacturing plants. The Consortium has requested the relevant constituencies, particularly the Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division), for inclusion in the project under the framework of CPEC from the BOI. Also, request to facilitate and support the Industrial Park as an independent SEZ and facilitate all relevant licenses for all sub-project companies of the project. The Minister for Investment Board has offered its full support to the consortium and will ensure its matchmaking at all levels.
The Federal Minister met the team of Sunwalk Optical Fiber Network (Pvt.) Ltd. Sunwalk has been operating in the field of fiber optics for over 20 years. Sunwalk is focusing on exploring Pakistan’s market to lay approximately 100,000 km of optical fiber network across the country in the next 8-10 years, with the first phase being right-of-way on Pakistan Railways rail tracks across the country. The off-way will start immediately after being found. Once the project is completed, it is expected to invest nearly US$5 billion in the communications industry chain and related industries, and indirectly create more than 100,000 jobs. I assured the company of all possible support and directed my team to execute the investment on a priority basis.
He also participated as a special guest in the international conference “Importance of Belt and Road Initiative in Reona Connectivity” at the University of Punjab, Lahore. The event was organized by the Regional Integration Centre, Punjab University, Lahore in collaboration with the Chinese Embassy. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a game-changer and one of the most comprehensive global efforts undertaken by any state in the 21st century and aims to strengthen social and economic ties through strategic dialogue, geopolitical and geostrategic dialogue. Exploring areas of economic connectivity. BRI is a framework for sustainability for partner states through challenges facing partners, regional security architecture in the Belt and Road ecosystem, maritime spectrum and prospects, and internal stability.