LAHORE: The Christian Economic Forum, a group of foreign investors, has shown interest in investing in the waste recycling sector in Punjab. In this connection, a 20-member delegation of Christian Economic Forum (CEF) led by Managing Director Grant Webster met Punjab Local Government Minister Zeeshan Rafique here on Friday. Former MNA Mohsin Shahnawaz Ranjha, Punjab Local Government Secretary Shakeel Ahmed Mian, Special Secretary Asia Gul and Suthra Punjab Authority Director General Babar Sahib Din were also present on this occasion. During the meeting, Grant Webster said that CEF is a group of major investors from eight countries, including the US, Malaysia, Canada, South Korea, China and the UK, which is currently working on various commercial projects in 48 countries. “There is a lot of investment potential in Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz’s Suthra Punjab programme and we have come to Lahore to review these possibilities,” he added. The CEF members expressed interest in investing in the waste recycling sector in Punjab, saying that they were very impressed with the effectiveness of the Suthra Punjab programme. On this occasion, the Minister told the delegation about first and second phase of Suthra Punjab programme. He said that Suthra Punjab has become the world’s largest solid waste management system under one administrative umbrella. “We will welcome CEF’s investment in Punjab,” he added. According to him, an effective digital monitoring system is the key to success of Suthra Punjab. This journey is still in its initial stages and improving day by day; so far 12.2 million tons of waste was disposed across Punjab in one year, while a workforce of 150,000 was engaged in keeping villages and cities clean. Today, there was a strong infrastructure of 145 landfill sites and 457 temporary collection points. They have converted a mountain of garbage into a green area in Mehmood Buti, a suburb of Lahore. Copyright Business Recorder, 2026