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Business Recorder
07-08-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Patchy security progress clouds confidence
Pakistan's volatile security environment, coupled with persistent political instability, has long acted as a drag on investment and business confidence, creating a climate of uncertainty that deters both local and foreign investors. Risks ranging from terrorism and militant attacks to street crime and politically charged demonstrations raise operational costs, elevate financial risk, and weaken long-term investment appetite. Recent findings from the OICCI Security Survey 2025, covering the period from June 2024 to May 2025, shed light on how changes in the security landscape are influencing business sentiment. The survey points to clear improvements in major economic hubs such as Karachi and Lahore, where businesses reported fewer operational disruptions and a more secure environment for company assets, employees, and customers. Declines in serious crimes, including armed robberies and kidnappings, particularly in Karachi, wider Sindh, and Punjab, have been a positive development, as has the notable drop in street crime in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad. Employee perceptions of safety during commutes have improved in these cities, suggesting that enhanced urban security directly supports workforce productivity and mobility. These positive changes have been underpinned by growing confidence in law enforcement agencies, with the Sindh Police, Sindh Rangers, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police, and the Citizens Police Liaison Committee (CPLC) Karachi receiving favourable assessments for their role in creating a safer business environment. However, the security outlook remains uneven. Regions like Balochistan, interior Sindh, and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have either stagnated or deteriorated, posing continued challenges for investors and businesses operating in or sourcing from these areas. In particular, Balochistan stands out as an emerging area of concern, with deteriorating law and order undermining perceptions of safety. Even in areas showing improvement, businesses continue to report issues such as illegal gratification, expatriate security risks, and disruptions caused by politically motivated strikes and demonstrations. These factors feed into broader governance challenges and perpetuate investor caution. The historical link between security and investment in Pakistan is clear. Episodes of heightened violence and political turmoil have repeatedly coincided with sharp declines in foreign direct investment. During 2008–2010, militant violence and political instability drove FDI down by more than 50%, from $5.41 billion in FY2008 to about $2.15 billion in FY2010. More recently, between 2022 and 2024, a combination of political turmoil, devastating floods, rising terrorism, and economic stress eroded investor appetite, stalling key projects and suppressing overall investment inflows. This pattern underscores the broader reality that improvements in macroeconomic indicators or temporary political consensus often fail to translate into sustained investor confidence without a secure and predictable operating environment. The OICCI Security Survey results suggest that while recent improvements in Karachi, Lahore, and other key business hubs offer a window of opportunity to strengthen investment prospects, this progress is fragile and regionally uneven. Long-term growth and the ability to attract sustainable foreign and domestic capital depend on addressing security risks comprehensively, tackling corruption, improving law enforcement in lagging regions, and reducing political disruptions. Without such systemic reforms, investor sentiment will remain cautious, and Pakistan's potential for leveraging its strategic location, young workforce, and emerging consumer market will continue to be constrained by the enduring perception of risk.
Express Tribune
17-02-2025
- Express Tribune
Kidnappers held, body of abductee recovered
KARACHI: Sindh Rangers and Anti-Violent Crime Cell conducted a joint operation based on intelligence information in Surjani Town, and arrested two accused Waseem Raza and Nix, involved in kidnapping for ransom, and recovered the body of the kidnapped woman. The accused had brutally murdered the deceased after kidnapping the lady for ransom. According to the spokesperson, Sindh Rangers received information that some culprits had kidnapped a woman, Sahar Fatima, from Gulberg Town and are now demanding a ransom of Rs10 million for her release. Following this, Sindh Rangers and Anti-Violent Crime Cell conducted a joint operation and arrested the kidnappers. During the initial investigation, the accused revealed that on February 15, they kidnapped a woman named Sahar Fatima for ransom and kept her in a rented house in Hassan Barohi Goth, Surjani Town. They tied the hands and feet of the kidnapped woman, and made a video of her and sent it to the kidnapped woman's father and demanded a ransom of Rs10 million. When the ransom was not received, the accused brutally killed the woman. On the identification of the accused, the body of the kidnapped woman was recovered from a house located in Hassan Barohi Goth. The body has been shifted to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for postmortem. An FIR of the incident has been registered at Yousaf Plaza police station, District Central. The arrested accused has been handed over to the Anti-Violent Crime Cell for further legal action.
Express Tribune
17-02-2025
- Express Tribune
Kidnapped woman murdered for ransom, body recovered in Karachi raid
Listen to article Sindh Rangers and the Anti-Violent Crime Cell (AVCC) recovered the body of a kidnapped woman and arrested two suspects involved in abduction and murder during an intelligence-based operation in Surjani Town's Gulshan-e-Noor area, officials said on Sunday. According to a Sindh Rangers spokesperson, authorities received a tip-off that a group of kidnappers had abducted a woman named Sehar Fatima from Gulberg Town and were demanding a ransom of Rs100 million. Acting on the intelligence, Sindh Rangers and AVCC carried out a joint operation and arrested two suspects, identified as Waseem Raza and Nix, from Gulshan-e-Noor, Surjani Town. Victim Tortured and Murdered Over Ransom During initial interrogation, the suspects confessed to kidnapping Sehar Fatima on February 15 and holding her hostage in a rented house in Hassan Brohi Goth, Surjani Town. The kidnappers bound her hands and feet and recorded a video of her captivity, which they sent to her father while demanding the ransom. When the ransom was not paid, the suspects brutally murdered her, officials revealed. Following their confession, law enforcement raided the house in Hassan Brohi Goth and recovered the victim's body. Legal Proceedings and Investigation Underway The victim's body was shifted to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for post-mortem. A First Information Report (FIR) has been registered at Yousuf Plaza Police Station in District Central, and the arrested suspects have been handed over to the AVCC for further legal proceedings. Authorities have vowed to conduct a thorough investigation into the case to ensure justice is served.
