ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Commerce has recommended to the government that local business community must not be harassed through law which unnecessarily increases cost of doing business and makes the country’s investment climate uncompetitive.
“Companies having paid-up capital of around Rs 5,000,000 should be bound to retain a legal adviser,” stressed the draft recommendations prepared by the Senate Standing Committee on Commerce for the government to promote foreign investment in the country.
The committee proposed promotion of religious tourism in Pakistan by highlighting religious shrines and sites of minorities through the world media. Water of Hassan Abdal, for instance, is considered to be quite revered by the Sikh community. Thus Pakistan can profit financially by ensuring provision of water to Sikh pilgrims. It will not only bring in much needed foreign exchange but will also strengthen the cultural and religious bonds of Sikh diaspora with Pakistanis. Similarly, religious sites in Sindh and Balochistan can also be preserved and promoted which in turn will earn money for the country.
The recommendations proposed that the adoption of a sector-wise approach will enable Pakistan to offer requisite proposals to foreign investors. Hence it is advisable that a comprehensive and detailed concept paper should be produced by the government regarding all those sectors in which it wants the foreigners to invest their money. Furthermore, one-window operation arrangements must be ensured to avoid hassle to investors.
The propounded proposals asked the government to highlight the non-Muslims cultural heritage of the country so that all those non-Muslims who migrated from Pakistan in 1947 may able to develop strong cultural economic, social and religious bonds with their homeland.
The draft recommendations emphasized that all these measures would surely increase the level of ownership which non-Muslims shall have for Pakistan and the heightened sense of ownership attachment would also convince non-Muslims foreign investors to invest in Pakistan.
