In the Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and the Gilgit-Baltistan ( GB ) regions, a flurry of dissent has resulted from Pakistan’s aggressive push for international investment in its mines and minerals sector.
The Pakistan Minerals Investment Forum 2025, which took place in Islamabad on April 8 through 9, was described as a unique opportunity to activate” trillions of dollars” of the country’s material wealth. Over 300 people from countries as diverse as the US, Saudi Arabia, and China attended the event. The gap between the center and regions has grown with the website. Islamabad is accused of tightening its hold on their money for the benefit of the main elite and foreign powers.
PM Shehbaz Sharif stated at the website that if Pakistan could draw on these great reserves, it could bid goodnight to the world’s lenders. His words, but, band hollow in Balochistan, where the Reko Dik copper-gold me has become a bulwark for dissention.
The state has endured years of neglect as its assets are taken from the rich for their own gain. Visitors claim they see little of the revenue, but KP’s pearls have long been a source of pride.
A cultural adult said,” Our children are starving, but the peaks bleed money.” Protests were held in Gilgit-Baltistan over contracts to Chinese companies, which are abounding with gold, uranium, and pearls. For a long time, PoK leaders, known for their ruby and sapphire payments, have demanded freedom over their resources. Former prime minister Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan said,” Our minerals does line foreign hands while we’re left with dust.”
