Saudi investors to fund Pakistan’s first theme park in Islamabad under CDA land deal
Faisal Mosque, Islamabad. (Photo: Ali Mujtaba / Wikimedia Commons)
LAHORE: A memorandum of understanding has been signed for Pakistan’s first theme park in Islamabad, with Saudi investors set to finance the project and the Capital Development Authority (CDA) providing the land. The signing ceremony took place at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium, where Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi attended as chief guest.
The MoU was signed by Prince Mansour bin Mohammed Al-Saud, chairman of the Saudi-Pakistan Business Council, and CDA Chairman Sohail Ashraf. According to the interior ministry, Saudi investors will invest in the first-of-its-kind theme park in Islamabad, while the CDA will provide land for the project.
Naqvi calls it a game-changer
Naqvi told the ceremony that Islamabad’s infrastructure was being developed along the lines of the world’s most modern cities, and the theme park would prove to be a game-changing project for the capital. Welcoming the Saudi delegation, he assured investors that every possible facility would be provided, and said a real estate roadshow in Saudi Arabia was being planned for the coming months.
Prince Mansour said Pakistan, particularly Islamabad, offered abundant opportunities for investment, and Saudi business circles were keen to deepen economic cooperation with the country.
Details still to come
Notably, the announcement gave no site, area, investment value, design or construction timetable for the park. Those details are still to be settled, and only then will the project’s scale become clear. The MoU follows earlier groundwork: in May 2025, the CDA’s Development Working Party approved consultancy funding for feasibility studies and detailed design work for a proposed theme park, a Ferris wheel and a cable car.
The deal comes days after Lahore hosted a three-day Saudi-Pakistan Real Estate Exhibition, where Saudi firms showcased projects in Makkah and Madinah. Pakistan is stepping up efforts to attract Saudi investment, while Saudi Arabia, under its Vision 2030 plan, is shifting from oil dependence towards tourism, recreation and real estate.
