The formal opening of the Industry & Trade Advisory Cell (ITAC) at Sarhad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SCCI) will be held on January 13.
Governor NWFP Lieutenant General Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah (Retd) will open the cell.
The establishment of ITAC at SCCI was a longstanding demand of the NWFP business community, which has been fulfilled on October 25 last year, when Small & Medium Enterprises Development Authority (Smeda) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Sarhad Chamber.
The purpose of the establishment of ITAC is stimulating development of trade, commerce and industry in the province.
The MoU has been signed by the Muhammad Tariq of Smeda and Nauman Wazir while former president SCCI Ghulam Sarwar Khan Mohmand and General Manager Smeda Sultan Tiwana were also present.
The cell will promote products and services by using Information Technology and e-commerce services to local the buyers, suppliers and to exchange online company profits.
The ITAC will offer over the counter advisory services for regulatory procedures, sales tax, income tax, municipal laws, professional tax, provincial taxes, ESSI, EOBI, labour laws and pre-feasibility assistance.
It would maintain a database of experts and consultants for the consumption of SMEs through the respective standing committee of the chamber, he added.
The SCCI members will get an easy access to potential investors, donors, financial institutions, and suppliers and above all they will get connected with the global network of chambers for business promotion.
In this connection, when Business Recorder contacted ITAC, Rashid Aman, Regional Business Co-ordinator said that the soft opening of the cell was already held on December 11, 2003 and till now 28 people have visited it in connections with how to improve their business concerns. The total working days are only 19.
Counting the achievements of the cell the short span of 19 days, he said a Memorandum of Understanding MoU) has also been signed under the name of Web spider for complete accounting/cost accounting system for fashion mill.
Chairman ITAC Nauman Wazir and Manager Smeda Muhammad Tariq were also present.