Government will continue to provide incentives to telecom industry, says Gilani

Tweet Pin It ISLAMABAD (June 04 2009): Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani on Wednesday assured telecom operators that the government will continue to provide incentives to the telecom industry so that the sector may continue to attract more investment and create more jobs.

The Prime Minister was talking to the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of telecom companies in Pakistan who called on him here and discussed with him matters relating to the cellular companies in perspective of the upcoming budget. A statement said that the CEOs of Mobilink, Warid, Ufone, Telenor and China Mobile expressed their commitment to jointly invest at least $1 billion in infrastructure, capital expenditure and technology in the next fiscal year to complement the enabling environment that the government is providing as a stimulus.
The Prime Minister appreciated the investment made by the mobile companies in the telecom sector of Pakistan, which has so far attracted foreign direct investment of $9 billion amounting to 46 percent of the country's total FDI in last three years.
The Prime Minister was informed that the telecom industry has been contributing substantial revenue to the exchequer besides creating over one million jobs. Minister for Investment, Senator Waqar Ahmad Khan also attended the meeting. Ambassadors of China, Luo Zhaohui; Egypt, Megly Amer; Norway, Robert Kvite and UAE, Ali Saif Al Awani were also present.