Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Friday emphasised that the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) preferential trade scheme remained a crucial framework for mutually beneficial trade with the European Union (EU).
The EU’s GSP+ offers developing countries preferential access to European markets in return for commitments on sustainable development and good governance. Under the scheme, eligible countries are required to implement 27 international conventions covering human rights, labour rights, environmental protection, and good governance. In exchange, the EU reduces import duties to zero on more than two-thirds of the tariff lines applied to its exports. Pakistan is currently one of eight countries who currently benefit from this scheme.
In a post on X today by the Foreign Office, it said FM Dar chaired a high-level inter-ministerial meeting to discuss strengthening Pakistan’s economic and trade relations with the EU.
The post added that he highlighted the importance of enhancing trade cooperation, exploring new opportunities for economic engagement, and further deepening Pakistan-EU economic relations.
“He emphasised that GSP Plus remains a crucial framework for mutually beneficial trade and underlined the need to maximise its potential for Pakistan’s economic growth,” the statement said.
The meeting was attended by the commerce minister, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Tariq Bajwa, Foreign Affairs Secretary Amna Baloch and senior officials from concerned provincial and federal departments and ministries.
A day earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held a meeting with EU Ambassador to Pakistan Raimundas Karoblis at the PM House in Islamabad. During the meeting, the prime minister said that Pakistan was committed to working closely with the EU on mutually beneficial trade enhancement initiatives, especially through the GSP+ preferential trade scheme.
Separately, Dar chaired a high-level meeting of the Economic Reforms Committee constituted by the Prime Minister. The deliberations focused on structuring the Planning Division as a central clearinghouse for all economic policies with key stakeholders from economic & relevant ministries and the private sectors. Discussions also covered the formation of dedicated Policy and Development wings to ensure coordinated implementation of reforms and strategic initiatives across sectors.