Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry President Malik Tahir Javaid in a meeting with Prime Minister Imran Khan donated Rs10 million to the PM Dam Fund.
The LCCI office-bearers and executive committee members were also present on the occasion. "This zeal and courage is required to put the country on the rails of progress and prosperity," Prime Minister Imran Khan said and hailed the gesture shown by the Lahore Chamber. He described the ongoing water crisis as the biggest challenge confronting the country and said if new water reservoirs are not built within seven years, the country would be facing a drought-like situation.
No foreign country, he said, is willing to lend more loans for building dams because the country is already overburdened by heavy foreign debts, he said. "I have been briefed by government departments about the challenges being faced by Pakistan on the economy and energy fronts. But in my opinion, the biggest challenge the nation has been facing is water scarcity," the prime minister said.
The Prime Minister said Pakistan had only two major dams as compared to 84,000 in China and 5,000 in India. Due to lack of storage capacity, 80 per cent or river water went to waste within a period of two and half month.
Speaking on the occasion, Tahir Javaid said that Pakistan would not only be able to tackle the economic challenges but also emerge as the economic power house of South Asia by growing at above 8 percent. He appreciated the PM for choosing a group of highly professional and competent team members in Federal Cabinet and hoped that they will work tirelessly to take Pakistan to the road of economic prosperity in line with your vision. He hoped that the Business Advisory Council which the government plans to form would lend more opportunities to the members of private sector to play their role in reviving the industrial sector of our country. With a view to bring reforms in the tax system, due consultation with stakeholders will ensure result-oriented policies for the business community, he added. This practice is being exercised in the developed countries where taxation reforms are preceded by extensive consultation.
He hoped following these norms of consultation, the government would engage the private sector extensively in the formulation of upcoming federal budget. He said the high frequency of tax payments, multiple tax collection agencies, pending sales tax refunds and withholding tax on banking transactions are other important issues which need the urgent intervention of the government.
He said the issue of high trade deficit can be managed by enhancing exports through greater product diversification and value addition. This can be done by establishing export clusters/SEZs for technology intensive exports (with special focus on engineering industry) and by diversifying Pakistan's exports to untapped markets through greater role of Trade and Development Authority of Pakistan, Embassies and Commercial Counselors.