ISLAMABAD:The establishment of technical arbitration courts by the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) is a crucial step towards assuring investment security for both domestic and foreign investors.

Expert technical professionals who specialize in mediating complex conflicts resulting from large-scale projects will staff these tribunals. After hearings from all parties involved, these technical tribunals will offer their opinions.

The PEC chairman, Engineer Najeeb Haroon, said that the council plans to establish centers for alternative conflict settlement in all of Pakistan's main towns.

"The Pakistan Institute of Corporate Governance (PICG) is working with us to develop these centers. On May 11, the first of these ADR facilities will open in Karachi," he said.

Haroon stressed that specialists will be consulted for mediation in situations when projects are delayed or come to an end.

"When projects encounter setbacks or delays, the cost of finishing rises. Investor trust will increase if disagreements are resolved quickly," he stated.

The head of PEC stated that the creation of alternative dispute resolution centers would help courts handle technical issues, particularly in light of the substantial backlog of cases they presently handle.
He mentioned the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) and stated that the organization has invited investors from all over the world to make investments in Pakistan.

Investors now have access to a single window of operation through the SIFC. "The prosperity of the SIFC is inextricably linked to the prosperity of our country," Haroon declared, underscoring the abundance of investment prospects in Pakistan.

In June 2023, the government led by the erstwhile PML-N devised a strategy dubbed the "Economic Revival Plan" aimed at luring investment from GCC nations. In accordance with this proposal, the foundation of the SIFC was approved by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The three-tiered SIFC has an executive committee with eight members, including Pakistan Army representatives, and an apex committee with six members, presided over by the prime minister.