PM Shehbaz directs FBR officials to hold monthly meetings with Karachi businesses

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday directed senior officials of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to visit Karachi during the first week of every month to engage directly with the business community and address their concerns, as he chaired a meeting to review tax reforms and the revenue authority's performance.

Chairing the meeting, PM Shehbaz said the government's objective was to improve the ease of doing business, promote investment and exports, and make the tax system more transparent and simpler to strengthen the confidence of the business community, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office.

Describing the business community as "the backbone of the national economy", he said businesses should be provided with every possible facilitation to help increase production and boost exports.

The prime minister directed the FBR to work closely with taxpayers and ensure their legitimate concerns were resolved on a priority basis. He also said companies complying with tax laws would be officially recognised and encouraged. PM Shehbaz said Pakistan's economy was "on the path to stability" and described the current year as one focused on economic growth and expanding business activity.

Officials briefed the meeting on the implementation of ongoing FBR reforms and measures aimed at improving tax collection.

They said production monitoring systems had been installed in the sugar, cement, tobacco, tiles and fertiliser industries, while similar systems were being rolled out in the textile and beverages sectors.

According to the briefing, the monitoring system generated an additional Rs42 billion in tax revenue from the sugar industry over the past year, Rs38 billion from the cement sector, and Rs15 billion from the beverages industry.

The meeting was attended by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, Economic Affairs Minister Ahad Khan Cheema, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja, Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani, State Bank Governor Jameel Ahmad and other senior officials, the PMO added.