Promoting business: ICCI urges focus on private sector
The government has reportedly borrowed an amount of Rs980 billion in the first quarter of the current fiscal year.
ISLAMABAD:
Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) has asked the government to focus on providing an easy credit facility to the private sector which would help promote new businesses, encourage industrial projects and allow business expansion. “The private sector is the engine of growth for the economy” said ICCI President Shaban Khalid. “But heavy borrowing, on the part of the government, from the banking sector is depriving it of affordable credit.” The government has reportedly borrowed an amount of Rs980 billion in the first quarter of the current fiscal year. Commenting further on public borrowing, Khalid shared that banks shy away from lending to the private sector due to the high government borrowing and prefer to invest in treasury bills and investment bonds. This, in turn, adversely affects the role of the bank whose main function is to promote savings and channel them to productive private sector trade and investment activities.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 13th, 2013.
Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) has asked the government to focus on providing an easy credit facility to the private sector which would help promote new businesses, encourage industrial projects and allow business expansion. “The private sector is the engine of growth for the economy” said ICCI President Shaban Khalid. “But heavy borrowing, on the part of the government, from the banking sector is depriving it of affordable credit.” The government has reportedly borrowed an amount of Rs980 billion in the first quarter of the current fiscal year. Commenting further on public borrowing, Khalid shared that banks shy away from lending to the private sector due to the high government borrowing and prefer to invest in treasury bills and investment bonds. This, in turn, adversely affects the role of the bank whose main function is to promote savings and channel them to productive private sector trade and investment activities.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 13th, 2013.