How port concessions became the new currency of economic diplomacy

Karachi handles roughly 60 percent of Pakistan’s cargo traffic, yet for decades, the port’s East Wharf operated under government management with chronic congestion and underinvestment. A 2022 concession agreement reshaped the ownership structure for the next half-century. Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum , chairman of Inmā Emirates Holdings, secured the deal through a joint venture with Abu Dhabi Ports, placing UAE-linked entities at the center of Pakistan’s maritime trade infrastructure