KARACHI: Adviser to Prime Minister on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood has said that Pakistan’s improvement in the World Bank’s business reform report was made possible by continuing the policies of the previous government, a media report said.Talking to reporters at the Islamic Chamber of Commerce in Karachi, the adviser maintained that the good actions taken by the previous government should be appreciated, including business reforms. Abdul Razak Dawood asserted that water supply was a bigger problem for Sindh industries than gas and electricity.
“The Sindh government should not raise water prices for industries,” he added.
The adviser said that Islamic countries should promote bilateral trade, adding that the government was striving to ensure a favourable environment for foreign investors.
The adviser elaborated that the government has taken forward the development of power production.
Commenting over the rising prices of vegetables, he was of the view that the government was in talks with Iran for imports of tomatoes.
Meanwhile Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance Abdul Hafeez Shaikh said ‘’dark days are behind us’’ as obvious signs of economic turnaround are emerging due to efforts of the government for the revival of the economy.
Speaking with chief executives and representatives of multi-national companies at the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry here, he said exports have started to increase due to government efforts. He spelled out various steps taken by the government to revive the sluggish economy including measures to deal with current account deficit and improve tax collection. He explained that there is zero tax on exporters, however, taxes have to be paid on local sales.
He said the government has recently announced a Rs 200 billion package to facilitate exporters. Thrust is being shifted from cheaper imports to offering benefits to exporters. He said the government has offered a lot of concessions to traders, but there is a need to start from somewhere in respect of documentation of economy. He hoped for further progress towards this end from January onwards.
He said though it is going to be challenging, there is a need to stay on course, adding that the country’s willingness to self-discipline is being acknowledged, and the International Monetary Fund has expressed satisfaction over the steps for economic stability. The adviser said the government has announced various programmes as safety net to help vulnerable segments to mitigate the impact of inflation. Many subjects of quality life such as healthcare, quality education, poverty alleviation and women protection come under the ambit of provincial governments.
He said the federal government has doubled the budget of social safety net programmes to provide relief and improve the quality of life of poor segments of the society. He said the government has reduced its expenditures as compared to last year. The government did not borrow any money from the State Bank of Pakistan for the last four months. The stock market has also witnessed a significant improvement.
He said there has been 16 per cent overall growth in tax revenue and 21 per cent growth in in-land revenue during the first four months of this fiscal year. He said 1.9 million people were under tax net in 2018 and this figure has increased to 2.7 million in 2019. The adviser said the government is bearing the brunt of non-planning by previous governments.
He said no growth spurt has sustained in Pakistan more than four years in the entire journey of economic uplift. Besides reforming structures of economy, the government is also reinforcing institutions.