The Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has demanded of the government to allocate land for setting up of Cottage City; as the cottage industry is not only building block of economy but also of utmost importance for alleviation of poverty and unemployment.
The LCCI President Abdul stated this while addressing a 100-member delegation of All Pakistan Cottage Industry led by its Chairman Ghulam Sarwar Malik here Wednesday. The economic revival would remain a dream until and unless the government redesigns its policies and divert resources towards the cottage industry, he said. He said the early establishment of a well equipped cottage city on the pattern of industrial zones in the country should be made part of the economic agenda of the government. He cited the example of China, Korea and United States where an equal importance is being given to the small business.
They are treated at par with the large scale manufacturing sector. Despite having all the resources, the economic downturn being witnessed by the country is an eye-opener for the people sitting at the helm of the affairs, he added. He called for a two-pronged strategy to cope with economic meltdown. He suggested to the government to evolve short-term sector-specific policies to break the economic logjam as it has proved that the longer term policies generally fall prey to political uncertainties.
Secondly, he said the government should expedite process of consultation with private sector as the business community is the real stakeholders and no policy should be announced without due consultation with the businessmen. Speaking on the occasion, Ghulam Sarwar Malik sought the help of Lahore Chamber for the revival of cottage industry and said that some well-equipped space must be allocated by the government for the cottage industry so that the people attached with cottage industry could be able to do their businesses with peace of mind.