FAISALABAD: Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) President Farooq Yousaf Sheikh said that business community had the potential to raise country’s exports to $100 billion, provided the government ensured a facilitative business environment and extended meaningful incentives to industry.
Addressing an awareness session on “energy and resource efficiency for key industries” organized by National Productivity Organization (NPO) in collaboration with the FCCI, he lauded the organization’s role in promoting productivity enhancement and reducing production costs through seminars, training programs and awareness initiatives.
He called enhanced productivity and reduced production costs the cornerstone of Pakistan’s economic revival and said that Faisalabad had evolved from being a textile-centric city into a diversified industrial hub, with thriving sectors including beverages, food processing, automobiles, chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
The city continued to play a pivotal role in strengthening the national economy through its industrial and export contributions, he added.
Highlighting chamber’s role, he said that FCCI not only represented the interests of business community but also worked for safeguarding the rights and welfare of nearly 10 million residents of this district. The chamber had more than 22,000 members, representing 128 industrial and business sectors and sub-sectors, he added.
He appreciated the NPO’s efforts to educate industrialists on international best practices aimed at improving productivity, optimizing energy use and lowering manufacturing costs. Such initiatives were imperative to enhance competitiveness of Pakistani products in global markets, he added.
The FCCI President said that following the chamber’s recommendations, the government had increased financial threshold for Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) sector to Rs2 billion, while Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif had also earmarked dedicated funds for SME financing in the federal budget.
Stressing the need for institutional coordination, he said that all public and private stakeholders must work with a unified approach to achieve sustainable economic growth, strengthen macroeconomic stability and expand exports.
He said that as many as 32 government departments were currently dealing with the business community. Their primary responsibility should be to facilitate entrepreneurs and remove procedural hurdles instead of creating unnecessary obstacles, he added.
He said that the government was targeting exports of $30 billion, but the business community possessed the capacity to increase exports to $100 billion, provided industries were supported through business-friendly policies, incentives and regulatory reforms.
Earlier, NPO General Manager Aftab Khan Masood highlighted the organization’s mandate and its contribution to industrial productivity while the participants were shown documentary films on National Productivity Organization, Faisalabad and Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry.
Senior Vice President FCCI Naveed Akram Sheikh offered vote of thanks while FCCI President Farooq Yousaf Sheikh presented a commemorative shield to Aftab Khan Masood in recognition of his services.
