According to the official news agency, in a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday, it was told that the negotiations on the Free Trade Agreement between Pakistan and the Gulf countries are in the final stages.
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) signed its first Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Pakistan in October 2023. The then Commerce Minister Gohar Ejaz said that Saudi Arabia played an important role in this agreement.
The GCC countries include Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, United Arab Emirates.
According to the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) news agency, the ‘meeting’ on the trade sector presided over by the Prime Minister was told that during the recent business conference between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, about 450 business-to-business meetings were held and Pakistan With the inclusion of more than three thousand firms on the trade portal, the volume of e-commerce trade is continuously increasing.
The meeting was also apprised of strict monitoring of Afghan transit trade, double-digit premium growth of public sector insurance companies, finalization of gem export framework and in-principle approval for implementation of goods-for-goods trade between Pakistan and Russia. went.
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It was further reported that “transit trade agreements with Uzbekistan and Tajikistan have been implemented,” while “consultations with the parties on preferential trade agreements with Azerbaijan and Afghanistan and a new strategic trade policy are ongoing.” Additionally, necessary legislation is being made for the establishment of Technology and Innovation Fund for industrial development.
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif directed the authorities to formulate trade policies with the main objective of facilitating the business sector.
He urged to take steps to increase competitiveness in domestic exports and promote exports of non-traditional goods and directed the exporters to pay the certified duty drawback immediately.
Highlighting the importance of the private sector, the Prime Minister said that consultation with this sector should be ensured in policy making and the dilution policy should be implemented for the improvement of the auto sector.
The prime minister directed the concerned ministry to devise a comprehensive strategy to check the performance of trade and investment officers posted in Pakistani missions abroad. The best performers should be rewarded and the incompetent should be removed.
The Prime Minister told the meeting that he will personally review the export sectors for 15 days.