PBC for setting up council to develop structural reforms

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Business Council (PBC) called for establishment of a high level council including political leaderships as well as independent and corporate experts tasked to develop deeper structural reforms and achieve broader acceptability and consensus from various quarters concerned.

A delegation of the Pakistan Business Council (PBC) led by Ehsan Malik and Bashir Ali Mohammad met Finance Minister Dr. Shamshad Akhtar here. The meeting was attended by Secretaries of the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Planning, Development and Reform, Ministry of Energy and Chairperson Federal Board of Revenue and additional secretary of the Ministry of Commerce.

The CEO of PBC made a comprehensive presentation of the issues facing corporate sector and shared proposals on strengthening the overall business environment and steps that could help boost different sectors of the economy. Concern was expressed regarding the trend towards deindustrialization in the country as Pakistan industry lacked competitiveness given the high cost of power and gas and faces difficult business environment because of distortions in incentive framework and inconsistencies of policy regime.

The PBC delegation advocated for provision of energy at competitive costs and addressing in a more holistic manner, the inefficiencies of DISCOs including their eventual privatisation that have resulted in high cost of power to industry. At the same time PBC emphasised broadening of tax base, reduction in indirect taxes and cascading duty structure. The delegates called for reduction and simplification in the number of taxes through unification of multiple taxes and reduction in tax rates to strengthen tax compliance. The delegation also laid emphasis on provision of level playing field with the informal sector, with focus on steps for ease of doing business that would ultimately revitalize growth of industry and thus generate jobs, exports and revenues for the national exchequer to invest in social development. The delegation observed that there was a need to effectively tap the potential in the country’s housing sector as it could help generate a large number of job opportunities annually.

PBC called for establishment of a high-level council including political leaderships as well as independent and corporate experts tasked to develop deeper structural reforms and achieve broader acceptability and consensus from various quarters concerned.