Pakistan can be sixth-largest economy before 2050, PM says

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan can become the world's sixth-largest economy before 2050, bringing forward a Goldman Sachs projection that had placed the country in that position by 2075.

Speaking at the Pakistan Minerals Investment Forum 2026 in Islamabad, he said he wanted to amend the forecast and that Pakistan would reach the rank before 2050 rather than in 2075, Independent Urdu reported. The two-day forum opened on Thursday, with coal, salt, gold and other minerals presented to international investors. Independent Urdu reported that the government used the event to assure investors of predictable policies, institutional support and security.

Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik told the forum that Pakistan is prioritising exploration for deposits of strategic value to foreign investors, and that new geochemical and geophysical surveys, exploration drilling and upgraded geological laboratories are being funded.

He named the areas of focus: copper and gold in Chagai and western Balochistan, lithium, tin and tungsten in Gilgit-Baltistan, and antimony and other base metals in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Malik said Pakistan has for years exported raw minerals and imported the finished products, and that the government wants more of the production chain, including copper smelting, completed inside the country so the economic value stays here. The Geological Survey of Pakistan is carrying out detailed surveys at 1:50,000 scale under an accelerated mapping programme, and decades of geological records are being digitised so investors can access verified data and face less uncertainty.

He cited international technical cooperation, including a UK-Pakistan geoscience capacity programme covering digital mapping, aerial surveys and deposit analysis.

Malik said finding a deposit is not enough on its own. Power, water, roads, railways and access to world markets are needed to make a mine commercially viable, he said, and infrastructure development is being linked to mineral projects. He listed the proposed upgrade of the Rohri-Nokundi railway corridor, a connection to Port Qasim and supporting infrastructure around RekoDik.

According to Aaj News, the prime minister said RekoDik, which he described as one of the world's largest undeveloped gold deposits, is moving towards the operational phase, and he thanked Barrick for maintaining its confidence in Pakistan. He said licences and contracts would be issued with full transparency, that federal and provincial governments would work as one team to protect investors, and that young people would benefit if investors set up technical and vocational training centres.

Malik said mining projects last only where the local population trusts them, and that the benefits of investment should reach the communities living around the sites.