Pakistan invites Apple and Samsung: Will the tech giants bite its phone manufacturing offer?

(FILES) An employee uses Apple's new iPhone 17 smartphone, which is demonstrated in a store during preparations for the series' launch of sales in Moscow, Russia, September 20, 2025. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina

Pakistan has invited Apple and Samsung to set up manufacturing under a new framework offering incentives, but neither company has committed. Analysts say Pakistan lacks the industrial depth and stability needed to attract such global firms compared to regional competitors.

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Pakistan has formally invited global smartphone giants Apple and Samsung to set up manufacturing operations in the country under a proposed Mobile and Electronics Manufacturing Framework. However, as of now, there is no indication that either company has committed to investing.

According to a report by PhoneWorld Pakistan, the government has reached out to leading international manufacturers as part of a renewed push to position the country as a mobile and electronics manufacturing hub. Officials have framed the outreach as a major policy shift, though analysts caution that invitations alone do not translate into factories, jobs or exports.

Invitations, not commitments

The Engineering Development Board has confirmed that Apple and Samsung are among the companies Pakistan is courting under the proposed framework, which is still awaiting approval from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

“We have invited Apple and Samsung under the new Mobile and Electronics Manufacturing Framework,” Engineering Development Board Chief Executive Officer Hamad Ali Mansoor was quoted as saying by PhoneWorld.

He said the framework includes incentives such as discounted land, performance-based subsidies and policy support aimed at attracting multinational manufacturers. However, neither Apple nor Samsung has publicly acknowledged the invitation or expressed interest in manufacturing in Pakistan.

Unlike India, Vietnam or Indonesia, where Apple and Samsung already operate deep supplier ecosystems, Pakistan currently lacks the industrial depth required for large-scale electronics manufacturing.

A weak manufacturing base

Pakistan’s mobile phone manufacturing sector remains largely limited to low-value assembly. According to government data cited in the report, localisation in mobile manufacturing stands at around 12 percent, far below regional competitors.

Officials claim the new framework could push localisation to 35 percent in the first year and eventually to 50 percent, but experts describe these targets as aspirational rather than realistic.

Pakistan continues to struggle with unreliable power supply, inconsistent tax policies, import bottlenecks and limited skilled labour, all of which weigh heavily on manufacturing decisions by global firms.

Incentives over fundamentals

The proposed framework reportedly offers higher performance incentives than existing policies, reflecting Islamabad’s growing reliance on subsidies to attract investment.

Critics argue that this approach highlights Pakistan’s underlying problem. Instead of building long-term competitiveness through infrastructure, supply chains and regulatory stability, the country is leaning heavily on concessions that may not offset broader risks.

PhoneWorld noted that Apple typically enters new markets only after years of supplier development, logistics planning and policy certainty. None of those conditions currently exist in Pakistan at scale.

Samsung faces similar hurdles

Samsung, which already manufactures smartphones in India and Vietnam, would face similar challenges if it were to consider Pakistan. The lack of component suppliers, weak export logistics and policy unpredictability make Pakistan a far less attractive option compared to established manufacturing hubs.

While Pakistani officials point to China-backed investments and memorandums of understanding signed during visits to Beijing, analysts note that many past MoUs have failed to translate into operational factories.