Iftikhar Ali Shallwani, Federal Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Works said that the boom in the housing and construction sector can turn around the economy, create more jobs and attract investment. He said that Dubai in 2008-09 was facing economic problems and the construction of only one mega project “Burj Khalifa” helped revive its economy. He said that many countries including Malaysia, Indonesia, China and Japan achieved better growth by focusing on the housing and construction sector, which showed its vital role in the economy. He said this while addressing the pre-launch ceremony of the first International Housing Expo being organized by the Ministry of Housing & Works in collaboration with the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry under the theme “Shelter for All” on Dec: 8-11, 2022 at Convention Centre, Islamabad. A large number of builders, developers and realtors attended the event and showed keen interest to participate in the Expo.

Iftikhar Ali Shallwani said that the purpose of organizing the first International Housing Expo is to stimulate the business and economic activities and provide affordable housing to people. He said that the government wants to promote the housing sector with public-private partnership to address the housing needs of people. He said that housing is the fundamental right of every citizen and the government wants to fulfil this right in collaboration with the private sector. He said that the Expo would attract local and international investors and would be a right step towards providing shelter for all.

Speaking at the occasion, Ahsan Zafar Bakhtawari, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry said that the country was witnessing a deficit of millions of houses due to rising population and stressed that the government should support the housing and construction sector to ensure shelter for all. He said that the growth in housing and construction would boost the business activities of all allied industries and help revive the economy. He said that timely delivery of credible housing projects on public-private partnership would improve the confidence of the buyers and attract more investment. He said that ICCI has already organized two very successful property and housing expos and hoped that the first international housing expo would be another landmark success. He said that the government should establish an Expo Centre in the federal capital to promote exhibitions of various sectors to boost the business and economic activities.

Faad Waheed Senior Vice President ICCI, Khalid Iqbal Malik Group Leader, Khalid Javed, Zafar Bakhtawari, Sheikh Amir Waheed, Muhammad Shakeel Munir, Sardar Tahir, Ch. Masood, Muhammad Naveed Malik and others also spoke at the occasion and assured of their cooperation and support for the Expo. Many builders, developers and realtors booked stalls of Expo in the pre-launch ceremony.