Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: President Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ICCI) Sheikh Amir Waheed has called upon the PTI Government to cooperate with the private sector in promoting exports, adding that without exports promotion, it will not be possible to overcome the rising trade and fiscal deficits of the country.

Waheed said that during Fiscal Year 2017-18, Pakistan’s trade deficit surged to $34 billion which was a record increase in the country’s history. It reflected that instead of promoting exports, the country was depending on imports to meet its needs.

Sheikh Amir Waheed said that Pakistan’s exports have been struggling for the past decades while the exports of its neighbors have been improving. He said in 1992, Bangladesh’s exports were $2.098 billion which have increased to $35.96 billion by 2017. However, Pakistan’s exports improved from $7.3 billion in 1992 to $21.569 billion in 2017 which showed that the country remained unsuccessful in promoting exports despite its potential. He said that Pakistan was mostly depending on textiles for export while its share of textiles exports in world market have come down from 2.2 percent to 1.7 percent.

The ICCI President said that during the last 25 years, India has reduced its dependence on textiles exports by focusing on IT services, auto parts, pharmaceuticals and light engineering goods due to which India’s exports have crossed $298 billion in 2017. He urged that Pakistan should also focus on diversification of exports. Waheed emphasized that government should support the private sector and help export value added products.

Senior Vice President Muhammad Naveed Malik and Vice President Nisar Mirza, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry have said that energy cost in Pakistan was highest in the region which was a major hurdle in promoting exports. They stressed that the government should focus on indigenous and renewable energy sources to produce cheap energy that would bring down the cost of doing business, foster business activities and promote exports.

Published in Daily Times, August 26^th 2018.