Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Wednesday that the government’s policies offer a market-driven and pragmatic approach supported by an evolving institutional framework that facilitates regional trade and investment flows.
Talking to the chief executive officer (CEO) of Telenor Norway Jon Fredrik Baksaas, on the sidelines of Oslo Summit, the prime minister said investment policy had been designed to provide a comprehensive framework for creating a conducive business environment for the attraction of foreign direct investment.
The prime minister appreciated the role and investment by Telenor in Pakistan. He said Pakistan’s strategic advantage in being the gateway to Central Asia, Gulf and the West Asia makes it a market full of opportunities.
He said Pakistan’s policy trends had been consistent, with liberalization, deregulation, privatization and facilitation being its cornerstones. Prime Minister Sharif said the consumer market in Pakistan was growing at a very fast pace as was reflected by tele-density which had now reached 125 million.
He said telecom sector of Pakistan had attracted substantial investment after deregulation and during the last 10 years billions of dollars had been invested in telecom infrastructure in the country. The CEO of Telenor appreciated the reforms and initiatives taken by the government towards stabilising the economy and improving macro-economic stability.
Baksaas briefed the prime minister about the history of Telenor which came to Pakistan in 2004. He said the company currently employs over 2,000 people directly and between 30,000-40,000 people indirectly.
He said the company had 34 million customers in Pakistan with a market share of more than 50 percent and in the longer run the company also wanted to enter in micro-finance sector. He said Pakistan was the only country in the world to have done biometric verification of mobile phone SIMs which can go a long way in digitalization of the country. Advisor to PM, Sartaj Aziz, Special Assistant to PM Tariq Fatemi and MoS for Education Baligh-ur-Rahman were also present during the meeting.