ISTANBUL, Friday, July 3, 2026 (WNP): Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Friday held separate meetings with the heads of Türkiye’s leading business groups and industrial organizations in Istanbul, reaffirming Pakistan’s commitment to strengthening bilateral economic cooperation and encouraging greater Turkish investment across key sectors of the country’s economy.
The Prime Minister met with Chairman of Çalık Holding, Ahmet Çalık; Chairman of the Board of Directors of Albayrak Group, Ahmet Albayrak; and President of the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB), Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu.
During the meetings, Prime Minister Shehbaz highlighted the deep-rooted fraternal ties between Pakistan and Türkiye and stressed the importance of transforming the two countries’ exceptional political relationship into a robust economic and investment partnership.
He underscored Pakistan’s improving macroeconomic fundamentals, investor-friendly policy framework and the government’s firm commitment to ensuring a transparent, predictable and business-friendly investment environment.
The Prime Minister invited Turkish companies to expand their investments in Pakistan’s priority sectors, including energy, mining and minerals, infrastructure, maritime affairs and logistics, information technology, telecommunications, manufacturing, agriculture and privatization.
He emphasized that the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), working in close coordination with federal and provincial authorities, is providing strategic investors with comprehensive one-window facilitation and institutional support to expedite investment projects.
During his meeting with Çalık Holding, the Prime Minister highlighted Pakistan’s vast investment opportunities in the energy, infrastructure, information technology and privatization sectors. He welcomed the company’s interest in expanding its operations in Pakistan, noting that its existing presence through Çalık Enerji and GAP İnşaat provides a strong foundation for deeper strategic cooperation.
In his meeting with Albayrak Group, Prime Minister Shehbaz appreciated the company’s longstanding contribution to Pakistan’s development, particularly in strengthening the country’s connectivity and infrastructure. He encouraged the group to further expand its investments in maritime infrastructure, port modernization and logistics, recognizing its significant role in Pakistan’s economic development.
During discussions with TOBB President Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu, the Prime Minister commended the organization’s continued efforts to strengthen business-to-business engagement between Pakistan and Türkiye. He proposed establishing an institutional mechanism for regular interaction between the private sectors of both countries and invited TOBB to lead a high-level business delegation to Pakistan to explore emerging investment opportunities firsthand.
The Turkish business leaders appreciated the Government of Pakistan’s ongoing economic reforms, improvements in the investment climate and investor-friendly policies.
They expressed confidence in Pakistan’s economic outlook and reaffirmed their interest in expanding investments across multiple strategic sectors while fostering long-term partnerships that would further strengthen the growing economic relationship between Pakistan and Türkiye.
The meetings reflected the shared determination of Pakistan and Türkiye to elevate bilateral economic cooperation, promote greater private-sector collaboration and unlock new avenues for trade, investment and sustainable economic growth.
