ISLAMABAD: Federal Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin said on Thursday the current government supports the idea of promoting the e-commerce industry as a catalyst to economic growth and source of future foreign direct investment.

While chairing a meeting with the representatives of 'Daraz', one of the prominent digital market places in Pakistan, the finance minister said he sees a great potential of promotion of small and medium enterprises in Pakistan, if provided support by digital platforms such as Daraz.

Such collaborative efforts will also create employment opportunities for the youth in the country, he added.

Daraz was represented by its Group CEO Bjarke Mikkelsen, Pakistan MD Ehsan Saya, Group CFO Kiran Faruqi, and Pakistan CFO Ahmad Hassan.

Managing Director (MD) Daraz Pakistan briefed the finance minister that his online platform offers 20 million different products and is visited by 15 million people every month.

He further stated that various concessions offered to the IT industry by the government have proven helpful in promoting the e-commerce industry in Pakistan.

Daraz CEO Bjarke Mikkelsen requested to have more representation from the e-commerce industry in policy making and asked to simplify the tax administration processes and procedures for e-commerce platforms, so that compliance becomes easier.

The finance minister stated his support for the growth of e-commerce industry in Pakistan and directed Daraz to propose initiatives where the government could work in collaboration with the e-commerce industry.

The Daraz team thanked the finance minister for his support and committed to present their proposals soon on the inclusion of the SME sector through the e-commerce platforms.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021