Pakistan, July 20 -- For decades, Pakistan has sat on one of the world's great geological gifts while capturing only a fraction of its value. The country's Himalayan pink salt, prized globally for its purity and colour, has largely left Pakistan as raw material, letting overseas processors and retailers pocket the bulk of the profit. The Chief Minister Pink Salt Value Addition Financing Scheme, launched by Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz Sharif, is a serious attempt to reverse that pattern by putting value addition, industrialisation and export competitiveness at the centre of mineral policy.

The scheme reflects a simple economic truth: nations no longer grow rich by extracting resources but by transforming them into finished, branded...