High commissioner courts UK firms for textile and fintech tie-ups
Tipu Usman told a Bradford summit that joint ventures pairing British technology with Pakistani manufacturing could lift trade beyond its present £6 billion a year.
Pakistan's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Tipu Usman, used his first visit to Bradford to press for joint ventures in textiles, fintech, advanced manufacturing and sustainable production, telling a trade summit that the two countries can expand trade and investment well beyond present levels.
He spoke at the West Yorkshire-Pakistan Trade, Investment and Innovation Summit 2026 at the University of Bradford. The West Yorkshire Combined Authority and British Friends of Pakistan organised the event in partnership with the University of Bradford and the Textile Centre of Excellence. Business leaders, investors, policymakers and academics attended.
Figures cited at the summit put annual bilateral trade at up to £6 billion, with around 250,000 people of Pakistani heritage living in West Yorkshire.
Usman called for stronger business partnerships and greater collaboration between the two countries. He praised Bradford's Pakistani community and its contribution to British society, and acknowledged the welcome and opportunities local communities extended to early Pakistani migrants from the 1960s onwards.
On the economy, he pointed to improving macroeconomic stability, reforms under way and growing international confidence in Pakistan's economic direction. He also cited Pakistan's role in regional peace and security.
Textiles took most of his attention. He encouraged British firms to work with the Textile Centre of Excellence on innovative fibres, yarns and sustainable products, and proposed joint manufacturing that would combine British technology and expertise with Pakistani industrial capacity. Halal food, advanced materials, skills and innovation were also named as areas for cooperation.
He thanked the University of Bradford's leadership for supporting innovation, economic growth and skills development.
The Mayor of West Yorkshire told the summit that longstanding people-to-people links between the region and Pakistan are a strong foundation for future partnerships.
The event closed with a push to turn those links into practical trade and investment deals.
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