LAHORE: Exporters of horticultural products, highly dejected over being neglected in the budget 2017-18, have demanded compensation to the losses to the tune of Rs200 million they faced due to devaluation of Pound following the Brexit.
Talking to media persons here on Friday, Regional Committee of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry’s (FPCCI) on Horticultural Exports Chairman Ahmad Jawad said that exporters of fruit and vegetables had faced huge losses following the Brexit last year as United Kingdom has been an important market for the horticultural products of Pakistan. He said that unfortunately the government was not paying heed to the grievances of exporters in this sector despite their major contribution in revenue generation.
“We had demanded at least 7 percent incentives on export invoice in the next budget assuring the government that export of fruit and vegetable will record over $1 billion in next two years, but our budget proposals were not accepted by the Ministry of Finance,” Jawad said. He also briefed on losses of millions of rupees to the exporters owing to devaluation of British Pound and damages to crop in the country for climatic hazards during last one year.
He also talked about the damaged crop of mango this year with their fear that the target of export set for this season may not be met due to the lack of enough quality fruit. He also voiced about the unjustified freight fair by airlines in the country as compared to the same in India. The private airlines charge more fare in Pakistan as compared to India, making export items from Pakistan highly uncompetitive in the international market.
He also shown his concerns over the move of some interests group for exporting the mango in wooden boxes instead of the paper boxes recommended for better quality exports saying that better packaging and use of standards boxes had valued mango to $700 per ton from $350/ton.
On the reply of exports situation, Jawad said that the lack of interests in resolving issues related to exporters was contributing a main tool for falling exports overall, in this regard the former CE of TDAP SM Munir was the person who failed to highlight the sector wise problems in front of the government. Munir’s three-year tenure as head of TDAP was more particular to praise the government steps and now when he step down from the office, he is a more worry person who always talk on dwindling position of the exports.
Jawad said that when the prime minister failed to give extension to him, Muneer even didn’t like the government budget and he rejected in the capacity of leader of the business community. “This is the novel example in our country that when you are in some government position your views were something else and when you out of the office you lamented the government,” he said.
