Federal Minister for Investment and Board of Investment (BOI) Chairman Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh has said that as a businessman himself, he understands problems of the private sector and their concerns about investment and policy hurdles.
Speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), the minister stressed that BOI was making all-out efforts to promote domestic and foreign investment.
He lamented the decline in Pakistan's global standing, saying there was a time when countries like China learnt from Pakistan, "but today China's exports have surged past $3.5 trillion while Pakistan's exports remain around $32 billion".
He noted that Pakistan possessed tremendous potential, but it needed to be unlocked through visionary reforms and investor facilitation. In this regard, bureaucratic red tape must be eliminated to ensure the smooth development of businesses.
Regarding the promotion of domestic and foreign investment, he told businessmen that industries operating in Pakistan's Special Economic Zones (SEZs) were enjoying benefits such as zero duty on imported machinery and a 10-year income tax holiday, which should also be availed of by other businessmen.
Speaking on the occasion, LCCI President Mian Abuzar Shad stated that the Lahore Chamber "considers investment as the cornerstone of economic development".
He acknowledged BOI's pivotal role in investment promotion and shared some positive economic indicators, including a significant decline in inflation to 0.7% in March and an increase in foreign exchange reserves to $15.7 billion. Similarly, remittances have soared 32.5% to above $24 billion.
He suggested that the rupee-dollar exchange rate should be brought down to 250, which was within reach. There are also hopes that the policy rate, which has dropped to 12%, will be in single digits soon.
However, he pointed out that the investment-to-GDP ratio stood at a mere 13.1%, with private investment contributing just 8.7%, which was not sufficient for sustainable economic growth.
He stressed that development was not possible without increasing domestic investment.
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