The provincial cabinet of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Thursday approved the KP Industrial Policy 2015 to accelerate industrial development and promote local industries in the province. The meeting of the provincial cabinet held here in the Cabinet Room of the Civil Secretariat with Chief Minister Pervez Khattak in the chair.
The objectives of the new industrial policy are to stand all industries of the province on their own feet and promote indigenous industrial sectors whose raw materials and skilled workers are available in the province. Under the policy new special economic zones will be established where different kinds of facilities will be available. The provincial government will also take measures for the provision of cheap energy.
The policy has identified law & order, lack of capacity to regulate private sector and dubious policies as challenges. The policy has especially focused on the construction of hydropower projects as the province has the potential of generating 24,000 megawatts electricity.
The line of action prepared under the new industrial policy is to bring improvement in infrastructure and make efforts for provision of all possible facilities in the newly established industrial estates. Under the new industrial policy, the provincial government will concentrate on the establishment of labour intensive units like agro-based and garments. The industries will be established in least developed areas to alleviate poverty.
For generation of skilled manpower, the provincial government in collaboration with private sector will further strengthen technical educational institutes. Furthermore, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government will also utilise China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) for promotion of exports from the province.
Under the new industrial policy, private sector will be given priority in initiating power projects and projects including Havilian Dry Port, Hazara Motorway, Havilian-Khunjrab Railway Track and Peshawar-Karachi Mainline. As the economic corridor will pass through Kohistan, Shangla, Mansehra, Abbottabad and D I Khan, therefore this route will also be used as platform for the promotion of exports.
Under the new policy, the provincial government will also establish modern and well-equipped dry ports and border terminals while beside the construction of special economic zones, the province will also concentrate on the revival of sick industrial units whose feasibility, credit and no objection certificate (NoC) will be obtained through one-window operation. The policy is prepared after survey of operational industrial units in 10 districts, 150 sick units, interview of investors, review of neighbouring countries and holding briefings with different stakeholders.
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