Spreading confidence: Dastgir stresses proactive approach in trade with India

Touches on topics of regional trade, reform and improved govt-private coordination.

KARACHI: Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan has said that the business community of the country needs to adopt a proactive approach to take on the new challenges in trade with India.

“You cannot grow economically if you continue to live with doubts. If you want economic growth, you will then need to accept new challenges despite the reservations,” said Khan while talking to members of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI).

“There must be some reservations of the business community regarding trade with India but I wish any problems would be reported to me, and I hope the business community will rise above expectations.

“We have to take tough economic decisions. Right now our government has to focus on two biggest challenges: extremism and electricity crisis,” said Khan while speaking on the priorities of the government.



He informed that the government is going to clear the entire 26,000 sales tax refund claims below Rs1 million by April 15 to ease the difficulties faced by the small businessmen.

Khan also said that the government wants to end the SRO culture and impose appropriate legislation in the upcoming budget. “The growing demand of agro-based finished products from Middle East has given an opportunity to Pakistan to develop its agro-based products.”

Adding further, Khan informed that the Middle Eastern countries have also urged the government of Pakistan to encourage value addition in agro-based products.

Speaking on the importance of commercial counsellors, Khan said the government will remove all commercial counsellors that are stationed in the Pakistani embassies in 2015. “The government will then start a new process of selecting and posting counsellors on pure merit”

The commerce minister said that his government desires close relationship with all the chambers of the country.

He urged the participants to improve the coordination between the chambers and the government departments. “Pakistan needs to increase its tax to GDP ratio and this can only be achieved when the government and the business community have a cordial working relationship,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 3^rd, 2014.

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