Pakistan Industrial and Traders Associations Front (PIAF) on Monday pledged all-out support to the government to increase the volume of exports to dollar 50 billion. Commenting on the statement of Federal Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir, Chairman PIAF Malik
Tahir Javed said that $50 billion exports for a resourceful country like Pakistan are quite achievable but the government would have to implement good governance and weed out corruption from institutions working for the development of exports. He said the restructuring of Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) is a good decision that would go a long way in paving the way for considerable increase in the existing volume of exports.
Javed said the government should also seek suggestions from the leading exporters to get desired results in the shortest possible time. He said there are a number of countries that are much smaller than Pakistan but the exports are far bigger than Pakistan and the only reason behind it is an enabling business atmosphere and facilitation to the exporters.
He said the government would also have to take all in the commerce related institutions on board for making the policies result-oriented and meaningful. Chairman PIAF said it has been a practice in the country - if one institution facilitated a particular sector the other starts creating undue hurdles; therefore, it is more important that this culture should be eliminated in the larger interests of the economy. He said strengthening of institutions would not only enable them to absorb external shocks but also be in a position to cater to the needs of the business community in a faster manner. He said the Chairman Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) should ensure the transparency of disbursement of Export Development Fund (EDF) so that the culture of research could get a real boost.