00:00Well, Minister, thanks very much for joining us. Now, you're currently at the World Investment
00:04Conference. What are your goals and objectives there? I think our most important goal is to
00:11get investment for Pakistan. I think Pakistan is on its way to prosperity. Our GDP is now growing.
00:20Our inflation is down. Our policy rate is down. So our economy is just about ready to unleash again.
00:29And in order for us to do that, we can do it in the traditional way or we can do it in the
00:34more intelligent way. And we are at this investment conference to do it in the more intelligent way,
00:40in the smart way. And by smart way, what I mean to say is that we need to plug into new value chains.
00:48And in order for us to plug into new value chains, we need to have new ideas. We need to have new
00:55products. We need to have new business models. We need to have partners who are plugged all over
01:01the world. So we are now seeking for a bunch of platforms or industrial areas. We're seeking
01:08investments with people who are leaders, trailblazers in each of those sectors. So
01:14that's the primary objective of coming here. We just came back from COP29. What were your
01:20main takeaways as a representative of a country that is so heavily impacted by climate change?
01:27I think climate change is a reality. It's affecting our lives. Pakistan, if you try to
01:35locate Pakistan on a heat map, you won't even find Pakistan. What I mean to say by that is that
01:41Pakistan has near close to zero carbon footprint. But Pakistan lies as a valley at the foothill of
01:47the Himalayas. So with a slight change in climate and the glacier flow rates, Pakistan can be
01:54devastated. Our entire canal system, our entire barrage system, our food security, everything
02:01gets destroyed and is susceptible to climate change. So while we are not contributing
02:08carbon or any emissions, we are highly susceptible to any kind of climatic change. For the sake of
02:15our own children, we need to make sure that not only we do things in a responsible way, but we
02:21also champion across the world a very responsible approach towards the climate so that our children
02:29can have their food security and we can grow in a sustainable manner. What can you tell us
02:34about the partnership between Pakistan and China on energy? I think it's fantastic. Our
02:41partnership with China, not just in energy, historically we've done a lot of work in energy,
02:48but we've also done work in the way of infrastructure. We've also done a lot of work
02:53in the way of ports. So if you look at the portfolio of Chinese investments in Pakistan,
02:58you would see that China has been the strategic partner that we've had. And they have invested
03:05in the entire infrastructure of Pakistan. And right now, in the second phase of CPAC,
03:11which is a part of Belt and Road Initiative, what we are now trying to do is build the industrial
03:17parks and business enterprises, which are going to ride on this, on the infrastructure that has
03:23been built. So it's a great strategic partner. So is Saudi Arabia. And so are a number of other
03:31countries, Azerbaijan, United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, China, and some of our
03:37Western allies. They're all investing. But I think the support that we've gotten from China
03:42in the way of building the infrastructure, which is essential for anything to ride on it,
03:47is remarkable. And we are indebted for that and very grateful for that.
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