The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank, has signed on Tuesday a partnership agreement with the Pakistan Business Council (PBC) to assist it in becoming an influential think-tank and advocate for the country's private sector.
The project, to be managed by PEP-MENA's Access to Business Services program, aims at helping the most important private companies in Pakistan. The project will help the Pakistan Business Council develop proposals to improve the country's regulatory environment in such areas as company legislation, product liability law, and tax reforms.
The Council also plans to initiate a dialogue with the Government of Pakistan on the country's trade agreements. The project is expected to reduce the cost of doing business and improve the growth prospects for the Pak private sector.
IFC Program Manager Markus Pilgrim said: "Business associations like the Pakistan Business Council can be a powerful tool for private sector promotion if they succeed in presenting an evidence-based and consolidated view of the business community. For this reason, we are interested in helping the Council in establish a high-level public-private dialogue on how to improve the framework for doing business in Pakistan."
Newly-elected PBC CEO Salim Raza explained: "Pakistan's further integration into global markets requires a continuous dialogue between the private sector and the government on the conditions necessary for improving international competitiveness."-PR