'Southern Punjab be declared zero-duty area: MCCI

The Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) said on Wednesday that southern Punjab should be declared a zero-duty area for a decade for proper industrialisation in this backward area and providing jobs to more than one million people.
In a press statement MCCI President Shahid Naseem Khokhar said that infrastructure is available in this zone. He said that special emphasis should be placed on identifying the barriers that discourage investment in southern Punjab while reliance should be on domestic investment to drive economy out of recession. "Domestic investment is one of the major determinants of sustainable long-term economic growth, but Pakistan's domestic challenges are turning investors off," he said.
He said that foreign direct investment net inflow is less than 2 percent of GDP while domestic investment accounts for more than 15 percent of GDP. "So, the government should play its right cards to mobilise domestic investment that would support economic growth and sustainable development".