The Ministry of Economic Affairs on Thursday signed an agreement with the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), a Saudi Arabian government agency that provides development assistance to developing countries, to finance oil derivatives worth $1 billion to Pakistan.
According to a statement made by the Economic Affairs Division (EAD), which is in charge of negotiating agreements for external economic assistance from foreign governments and multilateral organizations, the agreement was signed by Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Marshad, CEO of the SFD, and Dr. Kazim Niaz, Secretary of the Ministry of Economic Affairs.
The development comes after a Saudi news channel reported that Pakistan and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) are likely to ink an agreement of over $1 billion dollars in the days ahead in the oil sector.
“The coming days will witness the signing of an agreement between the Kingdom and Pakistan through the Saudi Development Fund for Development with an increase of one billion dollars,” Nawaf Al-Maliki, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Pakistan was quoted as saying by the Saudi Al-Khabaria channel.
Secretary Ministry of Economic Affairs Dr. Kazim Niaz and CEO of the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Marshad signed an agreement to finance oil derivatives worth USD 1 billion to Pakistan – 12-01-2022. pic.twitter.com/0VjJgHEAvz
— Economic Affairs Division, Government of Pakistan (@eadgop) January 12, 2023
Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, reportedly gave the order to examine increasing Saudi Arabia’s investments in Pakistan, which were previously announced on August 25, 2022, and were expected to total $10 billion.
The Saudi Development Fund (SDF), according to the SPA, was also given a directive by the Crown Prince to investigate raising the amount of the deposit made in favor of the State Bank of Pakistan by Saudi Arabia (SBP). The limit has been raised to $5 billion as of December 2, 2022, according to the agency.
The Saudi official news agency said the move strengthened the Kingdom’s position to support the economy of Pakistan and support its people. The report pointed that the move followed communication between the Crown Prince and Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif.
