Deputy Chairman Planning Commission of Pakistan Sartaj Aziz said the federal government is committed to take up on priority the problems faced by the local industry and manufacturing sector in Pakistan and to take appropriate measures to boost up industrial sector in the country. He maintained this while talking to the delegation of Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) headed by its president Tahir Javed.
The meeting discussed various proposals to address issues being faced by the local industry in Pakistan. Sartaj Aziz said the government had always believed to solve these issues considering proposals envisaged by and taking on board the stakeholders of the relevant sector. The deputy chairman further maintained that there was a dire need to promote competitiveness and ensure quality of products following globally acknowledged standards of manufacturing and pricing, said a press release.
Sartaj Aziz said for the first time during the last decade the government brought load-shedding of the industrial sector to zero-level. The basic purpose behind this initiative was to revive our ailing industry and boost up industrial production to compete the contemporary world. He further said the government was completely aware of the problems faced by different sectors but at the same time it was responsibility of our industry to bring innovation to ensure competitive edge to stay on par with the rest of the world.
The deputy chairman informed the delegation that the government was taking appropriate measures to increase exports and help the industry to reduce production costs. Similarly, the government was also focusing on the services sector which would ultimately result in boosting economic growth rate. Sartaj Aziz further stated that special focus on services sector is being paid to increase economic growth. Value addition in all sectors, including agriculture, can increase demand for domestic products.
He said focus on productivity, quality, and innovation could bring more value and open up vista of opportunities for our industry with increased global access to our products. Sartaj Aziz maintained that the government was planning to establish export processing zones under CPEC framework that would enable right estimation of demand of our products, increase in industrial products and timely access to the targeted market.-PR