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LAHORE: As bilateral trade between India and Pakistan grows at an exponential rate and the PML-N-led government gets ready to helm the country’s affairs, sources in the incoming government have revealed that all stakeholders will be taken onboard before any final decision on trade liberalisation with India.
The PML-N leadership had already clarified to members of the business community before elections that no unilateral action would be taken when it came to opening trade barriers with India, according to sources in the party.
The sources, however, went on to disclose that the process will not be brought to a standstill at any point and the previous government’s policies will be revisited to address pending issues of the local business community.
The source went on to disclose that the goal of the incoming government would be to ensure that a level-playing field is provided to Pakistani traders and industrialists.
On the other hand, the business community is also pinning its hopes on the newly elected PML-N leadership when it comes to boosting trade with India.
Shahzab Akram, a leading businessman in Pakistan’s pharmaceutical industry, believes the PML-N will consulate all stakeholders before opening trade with India.
“We are positive and this time around, the trade agreement will be implemented in letter and spirit,” said Akram, adding that the business community had given the PML-N its mandate to resolve their problems.
Akram went on to add that certain members of the outgoing government had moved too quickly to sign a bilateral trade agreement with India – an agreement many believe favoured Indian industry while ignoring the ground realties faced by local industries due to the energy crisis and poor law and order situation.
“We are lucky that things were not expedited as they [the previous government] wanted,” he said while criticising the decision to give India complete market access to Pakistan while getting only partial access to the Indian market.
The country’s pharmaceutical industry, Akram said, had been performing well – exporting and competing with multinational companies – and vigilant steps had to be taken while opening trade with India. Akram went on to add that the Nawaz brothers understood trade and industry and hoped they would create a win-win situation for industries trading with India.
Nabeel Hashmi, a leading automotive parts manufacturer in, Pakistan who supplies to global four-wheeler manufacturers, says his industry is ready to trade with India but needs greater assistance from government institutions. “We already submitted our recommendations to the government two years ago,” he said, adding that the government needed capacity building to handle issues faced by local industries.
He believes the Trading Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), the Ministry of Commerce and the National Tariff Commission and the Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) were some of the government institutions which were lagging behind when it came to addressing issues surrounding freer trade with India,
“On the other hand, Indian government institutions have completed their homework and are ready to invade the Pakistani market,” Hashmi said.
Tariq Bucha, a somewhat optimistic agriculturist, says Nawaz has been trying to negotiate a balanced trade agreement with India since 1999 and hopes the PML-N will listen to all stakeholders before making key decisions.
Bucha went on to criticise the new visa-on-arrival regime to Pakistani passport holders of 65 years of age at the Attari immigration checkpost.
“These people are not allowed to stay anywhere in Punjab and instead have to reach other parts of India by crossing over the Indian side of Punjab,” he said, referring to a stipulation in the agreement, which prohibits the senior citizens from visiting areas such as Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Kerala and other sensitive areas.
He went on to explain that while the Indian government has provided over $100 billion in subsidies to its agriculture sector, Pakistan has only provided Rs1.5 billion indirectly through the fertiliser sector.
Furthermore, Bucha said the PML-N government will also have to address major bilateral issues, such as India’s construction of dams, which are impeding the flow of water to Pakistan. “It won’t be an easy task for the PML-N government but the trade policy with India will have to be crafted carefully to cover all issues faced by the country’s agriculture and industrial sectors,” Bucha concluded.
PML-N to tread cautiously on Pak-India trade - thenews.com.pk
The PML-N leadership had already clarified to members of the business community before elections that no unilateral action would be taken when it came to opening trade barriers with India, according to sources in the party.
The sources, however, went on to disclose that the process will not be brought to a standstill at any point and the previous government’s policies will be revisited to address pending issues of the local business community.
The source went on to disclose that the goal of the incoming government would be to ensure that a level-playing field is provided to Pakistani traders and industrialists.
On the other hand, the business community is also pinning its hopes on the newly elected PML-N leadership when it comes to boosting trade with India.
Shahzab Akram, a leading businessman in Pakistan’s pharmaceutical industry, believes the PML-N will consulate all stakeholders before opening trade with India.
“We are positive and this time around, the trade agreement will be implemented in letter and spirit,” said Akram, adding that the business community had given the PML-N its mandate to resolve their problems.
Akram went on to add that certain members of the outgoing government had moved too quickly to sign a bilateral trade agreement with India – an agreement many believe favoured Indian industry while ignoring the ground realties faced by local industries due to the energy crisis and poor law and order situation.
“We are lucky that things were not expedited as they [the previous government] wanted,” he said while criticising the decision to give India complete market access to Pakistan while getting only partial access to the Indian market.
The country’s pharmaceutical industry, Akram said, had been performing well – exporting and competing with multinational companies – and vigilant steps had to be taken while opening trade with India. Akram went on to add that the Nawaz brothers understood trade and industry and hoped they would create a win-win situation for industries trading with India.
Nabeel Hashmi, a leading automotive parts manufacturer in, Pakistan who supplies to global four-wheeler manufacturers, says his industry is ready to trade with India but needs greater assistance from government institutions. “We already submitted our recommendations to the government two years ago,” he said, adding that the government needed capacity building to handle issues faced by local industries.
He believes the Trading Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), the Ministry of Commerce and the National Tariff Commission and the Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) were some of the government institutions which were lagging behind when it came to addressing issues surrounding freer trade with India,
“On the other hand, Indian government institutions have completed their homework and are ready to invade the Pakistani market,” Hashmi said.
Tariq Bucha, a somewhat optimistic agriculturist, says Nawaz has been trying to negotiate a balanced trade agreement with India since 1999 and hopes the PML-N will listen to all stakeholders before making key decisions.
Bucha went on to criticise the new visa-on-arrival regime to Pakistani passport holders of 65 years of age at the Attari immigration checkpost.
“These people are not allowed to stay anywhere in Punjab and instead have to reach other parts of India by crossing over the Indian side of Punjab,” he said, referring to a stipulation in the agreement, which prohibits the senior citizens from visiting areas such as Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Kerala and other sensitive areas.
He went on to explain that while the Indian government has provided over $100 billion in subsidies to its agriculture sector, Pakistan has only provided Rs1.5 billion indirectly through the fertiliser sector.
Furthermore, Bucha said the PML-N government will also have to address major bilateral issues, such as India’s construction of dams, which are impeding the flow of water to Pakistan. “It won’t be an easy task for the PML-N government but the trade policy with India will have to be crafted carefully to cover all issues faced by the country’s agriculture and industrial sectors,” Bucha concluded.
PML-N to tread cautiously on Pak-India trade - thenews.com.pk
