ISLAMABAD – 06 Feb 2026 – Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday invited Uzbek business firms to explore investment opportunities in Pakistan’s textile, pharmaceutical, mining, agriculture, and tourism sectors, as private sector entities from both countries signed MoUs worth $3.4 billion for B2B cooperation.
The prime minister, addressing the Pakistan-Uzbekistan Business Forum held here along with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who is on a two-day state visit here, said that both sides had signed a protocol on Friday to achieve an “ambitious yet easily achievable” target of increasing bilateral trade to $2 billion in five years.
At the forum attended by the ministers and businessmen from both sides, the two leaders assured the investors to provide a conducive business environment with no room for systemic hurdles.
Both leaders welcomed the B2B deals with the Uzbek president, calling it “very much achievable” because both sides had a very good program already drafted and established.
“I am here, of course, as Prime Minister of Pakistan, but for this forum as the CEO of Pakistan. I am just a telephone call away. My colleagues are just a telephone call away. We will remove any bottleneck or impediment on the way.
And I would like to assure you that bureaucracy and red tapism will not create any kind of hurdle in your business proposals,” Prime Minister Shehbaz committed.
Recalling his participation in a similar business forum last year in Tashkent, he said the deliberations there had led the bilateral trade to $450 million during the last year, which was still far below the potential.
He expressed the hope that President Mirziyoyev’s visit would go a long way to strengthen bilateral relations and convert them into a level of unprecedented economic cooperation.
Referring to the signing of $2 billion trade protocol, he said that Pakistan-Uzbekistan relations would now be measured by trade flows, investment projects, industrial partnerships and people-to-people exchanges.
He said both countries would form a working group to come up with a roadmap of five years to promote trade, investment portfolio, and joint collaborations in research and development, IT, and agriculture.
Highlighting his government’s achievements on the economic front, he said the country had transitioned from a period of severe physical turbulence in 2023 to an improved economic conditions with the inflation rate down from over 30% to a single digit, banking policy rate from 22.5% to 10.5%. and IT sector exports are touching $3.8 billion exports.
Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan and Uzbekistan stood to benefit immensely from each other’s strengths in key sectors.
He also appreciated the economic achievements of President Mirziyoyev’s government including doubling of GDP in just 10 years, lifting 8.5 million people out of poverty and unemployment reduced by half.
The prime minister said 30 redundant textile plants in Uzbekistan could provide a win-win opportunity for investors from both sides and expressed the hope that PIA flights to Uzbekistan would boost people-to-people contact.
In his remarks, President Mirziyoyev said that the business forum reflected the long-standing shared intentions and deep mutual understanding.
He congratulated Prime Minister Shehbaz and the people of Pakistan on the remarkable economic progress with reduced inflation, single-digit interest rates, and strong recovery which he said provided excellent opportunities for deeper cooperation.
Calling the business community a “true bridge” between two nations, he said that through the $2 billion trade protocol, both sides had committed to zero corruption, no bottlenecks, and no obstacles.
He said Uzbekistan needed Pakistan’s expertise and high-quality in the pharmaceutical sector, affordable medicines and offered 10-year tax exemptions, support, and all conducive conditions.
He told the gathering that Uzbekistan had around 30 high-tech textile enterprises awaiting Pakistani management and expertise to access world markets, and also expressed his country’s strong interest in collaborations in leather goods.
Regarding mining cooperation, he said Uzbek relevant ministry was ready to finalize action plans and that his country had a growing demand for rice, potatoes, processed meat and was open to joint ventures, land allocation, and cooperation in seed production.
The Uzbek president said that four weekly flights were operating from Uzbekistan to Pakistan and more routes would boost people-to-people and business links.
He invited Pakistani businessmen to visit Uzbekistan to study opportunities, develop plans, and start operations, assuring all necessary support.
Later, the two leaders also witnessed the exchange of the documents of pre-signed MoUs between the business entities from both sides.
