Dar says government to avoid borrowing from banks
KARACHI: Federal Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs, Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar said that the government has decided to form a task force for facilitating foreign investors in meeting all requirements to set up an industry or start a business besides ensuring their security.
He said Pakistan Muslim League (N) government gives great importance to foreign direct investment (FDI) and offers equal facilities to local and foreign investors.
“All economic sectors are open to foreign investors,” the Minister said while speaking at the inaugural ceremony of completion of Yamaha Motor Pakistan (Private) Limited’s motorcycle assembly plant at Port Qasim Industrial Zone.
Federal Minister for Privatization, Muhammad Zubair Khan, State Minister/ Advisor to the Prime Minister on Investment and Chairman, Board of Investment, Dr Miftah Ismail, Governor State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Ashraf Mehmood Wathra, Chairman Karachi Stock Exchange, Muneer Kamal, Japanese Ambassador to Pakistan, Hiroshi Inomata, President of Yamaha Motor Company Limited, Managing Director, Yamaha Motor Pakistan (Private) Limited (YMPK), Yasushi Ito were also present.
The auto industry enjoys importance in the economy as it has a number of allied industries, he said.
He said that Pakistan and Japan to work together in various sectors for their mutual benefits.
He quoted JETRO declaring Pakistan as one the attractive places for foreign investment; offering many potential and highly profitable avenues.
Pakistan is cost competitive country with a strong base of workforce as 60 percent of its population is below 30 years. Pakistan has also a strong middle class of 100 million people, he said.
Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar informed that Pakistan government has focused on ease of doing business. We are also going to simplify policies/framework of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which are the engine of an economy.
He, on behalf of the Prime Minister, congratulated Yamaha Motor Limited and Yamaha Motor Pakistan (Private) for successful commissioning of the motorcycle assembly plant.
He also informed that IMF has shown satisfaction over our macro-economic indicators and in May 2015 a team Pakistan’s financial experts will have a session with International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Dubai for streamlining the remaining grant amount.
Besides gaining good progress in the war against terror and to overcome energy crisis with initiating many potential power projects in the country, the government has succeeded in increasing foreign reserves to more than dollars seventeen and a half billion.
“This year, we set a new record of reserves,” Senator Dar remarked adding that Karachi Stock Exchange has made tremendous increase to 33,000index from 19000 when PML-N took over.
The government has also brought down fiscal deficit to 1 percent from 2percent. It has decided to avoid borrowing from banks and the borrowing has gone significantly low against that of last year.
