ISLAMABAD: Once hailed as a gamechanger for Pakistan’s economy, the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) has not convened a single Apex Committee meeting since January 2, 2025, raising questions about its waning momentum and ability to attract large-scale foreign investment.
The 11th Apex Committee meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and attended by top civilian and military leadership, had reviewed performance and set goals for 2025. Since then, the highest decision-making tier of the SIFC, which was designed as a “one-window” fast-track platform backed by civil-military synergy, has remained conspicuously quiet.
A senior official of the SIFC, when contacted, however, claimed that after 2nd Jan, 2025 the Apex Committee met once but quietly. Executive Committee of the SIFC also last met in June 2025 -- eleven months ago. The 14th meeting of the Executive Committee was held on June 18, 2025. While the SIFC’s topmost tiers haven’t met for long, the council’s secretariat continues.
It is said that the Implementation Committee of the SIFC meets frequently but the absence of high-profile Apex sittings stands in sharp contrast to the frequent, headline-grabbing meetings that marked the SIFC’s launch in mid-2023 and its peak in 2024.
The SIFC was established with ambitious targets to draw billions in FDI, particularly from Gulf countries, China and Europe, by fast-tracking projects in defence, agriculture, minerals, energy, and IT. Early results showed modest upticks in certain sectors, but critics argue structural bottlenecks, slow project implementation and modest actual inflows have persisted.
SIFC representatives insist that the platform remains active and effective at the operational level. Secretary Apex Committee Dr. Jahanzaib Khan recently addressed international business forums, emphasising ongoing reforms and opportunities in 2026, said a source.
Independent sources say that FDI inflows have fallen short of expectations, with many high-profile MoUs yet to translate into ground-breaking projects. The SIFC has been struggling to restore investor confidence amid Pakistan’s familiar challenges of political uncertainty, bureaucratic hurdles, security concerns and policy inconsistencies.
A source said: “The SIFC’s charm lay in its top-level backing and speed. Without regular Apex and Executive Committee meetings, which signals continued high-priority attention, the SIFC risks looking like just another bureaucratic body.”
