BOI takes steps to facilitate investment

Asks ICCI to share sector-wise list of issues so efforts can be made to resolve them

ISLAMABAD:

The Board of Investment (BOI) is taking many initiatives to promote ease of doing investment in Pakistan, said BOI Chairman Atif R Bokhari.

Talking to a delegation of the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) on Monday, he said that the government had launched Pakistan Regulatory Modernisation Initiative (PRMI) and BOI was designated as the lead agency for its implementation.

He hoped that the initiative would reduce compliance costs of businesses and improve the regulatory regime for them as well.

He asked ICCI to prepare a sector-wise list of major issues/ hindrances in the way of investment and share the same with BOI so that efforts could be made to address them for the facilitation of business and investment activities.

He said that BOI Executive Director General Mukarram Jah Anwar would work as focal person with ICCI for strong liaison between both sides in order to make joint efforts for investment promotion.

Also speaking on the occasion, BOI Secretary Fareena Mazhar assured businessmen that they would keep the private sector in the loop on major initiatives for investment promotion.

ICCI President Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan stressed that BOI should set up a one-window facility as early as possible to facilitate investors in making investment in Pakistan.

He said that Pakistan had tremendous potential for investment in various sectors of its economy including tourism, hospitality, infrastructure development and others.

However, lengthy business registration processes, a complicated tax regime, inconsistent policies, insufficient policy reforms and red tape in government departments were the major hurdles faced by local and foreign investors, he added.

He emphasised that BOI should work with relevant departments to address these issues in order to facilitate the growth of investment in the country. He suggested that BOI and other government departments should take major chambers of commerce on board during the policymaking process, which would help in making more business-friendly policies and promoting business and investment activities in the country.

Other chamber officials also offered useful proposals for investment promotion.

They said that many foreign diplomats and delegations used to visit ICCI and other chambers, therefore, BOI should regularly share updated information with the chambers about potential areas of investment in the country, which would be helpful in attracting more FDI to Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 27^th, 2021.

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