Lagging behind in the economic race

Globally, Pakistan is the 5th largest market in terms of absolute customer base, powered by a young demographic and a growing population. These numbers alone would outshine most developed countries, yet global brands and even local companies rarely choose Pakistan as their launchpad. The answer isn’t political, regional, or personal — it’s purely business. If the same amount of effort yields significantly higher returns elsewhere, investing in Pakistan simply doesn’t make monetary sense. Businesses often expand in developing markets lured by the promise of higher returns that come alongside high risks. These economies, being smaller, typically expand faster than the global average, balancing out the risks and encouraging investment. However, over the last 23 years since the turn of the century, Pakistan’s economic growth has lagged its regional peers.