Govt of Punjab to Lease Industrial Plots to Foreign Investors

Foreign investors will now be able to operate on industrial land in Punjab as the government plans industrialization for enhancing the economic development of the region. The Government of Punjab decided in a meeting to lease industrial plots to foreign investors rather than sell them industrial land. For this purpose, a comprehensive and appealing lease policy will be developed through consultation. Besides Senior Provincial Minister Aslam Iqbal in the chair, the meeting was attended by Punjab Board of Investment and Trade (PBIT) Chairman Fazeel Asif, Chairman Faisalabad Industrial Estate Development & Management Company (FIEDMC), Additional Secretary Commerce, CEOs of FIEDMC and Punjab Industrial Estate Development and Management Company (PIEDMC), and PBIT directors. The meeting went over the concerns of industrial estate colonization, plot pricing, and infrastructure provision. Aslam Iqbal observed that Punjab’s Special Economic Zones are engines of economic development that should be industrialized on priority. By hastening the industrialization process, new job opportunities can be created. He stated that a comprehensive agreement would be reached with the buyers of industrial estate plots and that local investors should be encouraged. The minister also ordered a special audit and renovation of the FIEDMC to be conducted. He said that infrastructure provision in industrial estates and the industrialization process should be accelerated. The aforesaid plan may offer returns that would benefit sectors such as agriculture and the economy as a whole. The resolution of obstacles and the establishment of a fair environment for foreign investors in real estate will create many growth opportunities, while at the same time opening more avenues for enhancing the country’s forex cover.