Digitisation to help economy recover

The danger of a second wave of Covid-19 pandemic is still looming in Pakistan while the first wave dealt a blow to business operations of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), said Pak-China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) President Zarak Khan.

Speaking at a panel discussion titled “Development strategies to sustain growth” on Monday, he stressed the need for framing strategies for sustainable economic growth.

“China is now 40-50% digitised and we can also achieve this goal for Pakistan’s economic recovery and development,” he said.

Keeping in view the fact that traditional offline businesses remained stagnant and online business activities flourished during the pandemic, he called for speeding up digital transformation among the SMEs in an effort to adapt to the new normal.

“Covid-19 is a global public health crisis, which has hit the fast-forward button for SMEs,” he said.

“Our country should embrace digital changes that are crucial for long-term development of every sort of business because we have no idea of the upcoming crisis from the second wave of Covid-19,” he said. Speaking on the occasion, PCJCCI Senior Vice President Moazzam Ghurki said Pakistan was making efforts to promote research and development in the field of digitisation.

For instance, traditional business models in the apparel industry have customers who buy clothes that are produced without considering their preferences.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 22^nd, 2020.

Like Business on Facebook, follow @TribuneBiz on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.