Ahsan Iqbal: Pakistan Must Build Its Own Global Brands Instead of Making for Others
Ahsan Iqbal: Pakistan Must Build Its Own Global Brands Instead of Making for Others
Pakistan can produce world-class textiles, surgical instruments, sports goods and even FIFA World Cup footballs, yet foreign brands walk away with the credit and most of the value. That was the blunt message from Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal at a national branding conference in Islamabad on Tuesday (October 6), as he called for Made in Pakistan to become a recognised global identity rather than a quiet manufacturing tag.
Speaking to industry leaders and branding experts, Iqbal said the country had spent decades acting as a factory for foreign companies instead of building internationally recognised Pakistani brands of its own.
The Vietnam comparison
Iqbal laid out an uncomfortable benchmark. Pakistan’s exports have been stuck at roughly $40 billion since 1990, he said, while Vietnam’s have climbed to about $475 billion over the same period.
The gap, he argued, comes down to branding and positioning. Pakistan must move away from low-value commodity exports toward differentiated products that carry a Pakistani identity and command better prices in world markets.
A “Nation Brand Lens”
The minister outlined a “Nation Brand Lens” built around seven areas — Culture, Exports, Governance, Diplomacy and Defence, Entertainment, Tourism and Sports — to be unified under a single national brand.
Leading the effort will be the National Center for Brand Development, working under the Ministry of Planning. Its job: help Pakistani industries graduate from serving domestic markets to selling directly abroad, and stitch the “Made in Pakistan” identity into everything the country exports.
The roundtable also took up the Country Brand Framework, a proposed global slogan, ways to measure brand value, and the policy support industries will need to make the shift.
Why a Made in Pakistan brand matters
Stronger branding is not just a marketing exercise. Officials say a recognised national brand would lift the country’s global image, create pull for Pakistani products, and give local manufacturers the confidence to price and compete as equals rather than as anonymous suppliers.
What is the National Center for Brand Development?
A new body under the Ministry of Planning that will lead Pakistan’s national branding effort, helping industries move from domestic sales to direct exports and building the “Made in Pakistan” identity.
How far behind is Pakistan on exports?
Iqbal said exports have hovered around $40 billion since 1990, while Vietnam’s grew to roughly $475 billion in the same period.
Which products did Iqbal highlight?
Textiles, surgical instruments, sports goods and FIFA World Cup footballs — all world-class goods Pakistan already manufactures, he said, but which foreign brands claim as their own.
