SIALKOT: Managing Director State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Qasim Nawaz has said that the SBP will continue its tradition to promote the SMEs for boosting the national economy, saying that the SMEs Sector has been playing a backbone role in national economy as this sector not only employees tens of millions of workforce but also acts as impetus for the corporate sector as well.
He stated this while addressing the participants of the “SMEs Finance Mela 2015” held at Sialkot under the auspices of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) in active collaboration with Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) here today.
SBP Managing Director added that SBP will continue to facilitate the SMEs as maximum level, enabling them to struggle hard for boosting the national economy with full devotion, dedication, hard work and complete peace of mind.
Qasim Nawaz added that the SMEs sector is striving hard to maintain its upward momentum due to lack of required infrastructure, especially finance. He revealed that SBP aimed at increasing outreach of SMEs finance through participating banks to transform this sector as engine of growth.
He said that the SBP has organized “SMEs Finance Mela 2015” at Sialkot (a hub of the SMEs), as this event was one of the series of events that SBP was organizing to bring solutions and thus creating an enabling environment for this SMEs sector to pick momentum to achieve the goal of sustainable prosperity through affordable financing.
Earlier, SBP Managing Director Qasim Nawaz inaugurated the SME Finance Mela 2015 at Sialkot here today, flanked by the representatives of the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), commercial banks and other financial institutions here today.
On this occasion, while addressing the participants, President Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) Maj (Rtd) Mansur Ahmed said that the exporters of Sialkot are the “Roaming Ambassadors of Pakistan”, who travel all around the world to fetch business and with their personal efforts, the export earnings of Sialkot stand at US $ 2 billion annually. He said that the Sialkot exporters had been earning precious foreign exchange to the tune of US $ 2 billion annual , besides, playing a pivotal role in strengthening the national economy and boosting the national exports as well.
SCCI President Maj (Rtd) Mansur Ahmed gave a detailed briefing on Sialkot’s unique export culture and Sialkot’s marvelous socio-economic development on self help basis by Sialkot business community.
He said that export-oriented Sialkot city has successfully followed the examples of Japan, Germany, Korea, Taiwan and other countries in development of SME culture in Sialkot, as the Sialkot based SMEs have been producing only exportable items and enjoy special status in the international market for its products. Government and other financial institutions are lending support to the export sector and we are foreseeing growth of exports and development of SMEs at a fast pace in Sialkot.
