Ali Jehangir Siddiqui appointed ambassadorlarge for investment
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ISLAMABAD - Ali Jehangir Siddiqui appointed ambassador-at-large for investment
A notification has been issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday that Prime Minister Imran Khan has approved appointment of Pakistan’s former Ambassador to United States, Ali Jehangir Siddiqui as “Ambassador-at-Large” for foreign investment. According to the notification, Ali Jehangir Siddiqui has been appointed as “Ambassador-at-Large” for foreign investment in an honorary capacity with effect from 13th June 2019.
Ali Jehangir Siddiqui is a diplomat and entrepreneur. He is the former Ambassador of Pakistan to the United States. Previously, he served as Special Assistant to the Prime Minister of Pakistan with the status of Minister of State. He recently joined the board of Afiniti also known as a “Global Unicorn” along with the former British Prime Minister David Cameroon and Admiral William Owen, Ex-US Vice Chairman Joint Chief of Staff. He also served in various business and government advisory councils, policy institutions and commercial entities.
Siddiqui founded JS Bank in 2006 by acquiring American Express Bank's Pakistan operations. Over the space of a decade the Bank has grown to $4 billion in assets, 5000 employees and branches in over 160 cities in Pakistan. Previously he was Chairman and Chief Investment Officer at JS Private Equity Management.
Siddiqui graduated from Karachi Grammar School in 1995. In 1999, he graduated from Cornell University with a B.A. degree in Economics. He has also pursued additional educational courses at MIT, the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford.
In March 2018, he was appointed as the Ambassador of Pakistan to the United States and commenced his duties on May 29, 2018. Prior to his appointment as the Pakistani Ambassador to the United States. Siddiqui’s reputation and work was acknowledged by US commentators while it has been frequently criticized by Indian media.
In June 2018, Siddiqui presented his credentials to US President Donald Trump. In July 2018, Siddiqui met James Mattis, the US Secretary of Defence. The meeting took place at the Pentagon where Siddiqui received a guard of honor on behalf of Pakistan. During celebrations for Pakistan’s 71st Anniversary of Independence in August 2018 at the Pakistani Embassy in Washington, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Ambassador Alice Wells, the Chief Guest at the event, acknowledged Pakistan's sacrifices against terrorism and stated that Sididqui was “an important player here” and that “everyone in town has met you and is talking about the energy you bring to the job.”
Soon after Shahid Khaqan Abbasi became Prime Minister of Pakistan, Siddiqui joined the Government and served as a Special Assistant to the Prime Minister with the status of a Minister of State from August 2017 until May 2018. Moreover, he has been involved in several multilateral engagements. As Special Assistant to the Prime Minister in 2017 and 2018, Siddiqui participated as a member of the Prime Ministers delegations to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings, UN General Assembly, Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s Council of Heads of Government Meetings and the World Economic Forum Annual Meetings. Ali was also listed by Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue as amongst the top 100 individual taxpayers in Pakistan for the year 2013. In 2014, he was chosen as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum.
The appointment of a high caliber and experienced campaigner like Ali Jehangir Siddiqui bodes well for the future prospects of Pakistan’s foreign commitments. It has been well known that Pakistan is fraught with low foreign investment and there is need to capitalize on the investment sector. Thus, the PTI government’s step to appoint him for Ambassador-At-Large for investment is a step taken in the right direction.
