ISLAMABAD (APP): Prime Minister Imran Khan Wednesday said the government was promoting small and medium businesses to improve the financial conditions of middle and poor segments of the society. He said the government was also implementing a long-term policy to promote industries and boost exports.
The prime minister expressed these views during a meeting with the delegation of prominent industrialists and businessmen.
He said the government was cognizant of the impacts of global price hike upon the people and was taking all steps to save them. He also stressed upon the industrialists and businessmen to support the government in its efforts to provide relief to the common man.
During the meeting, it was agreed to increase the minimum monthly wages of the workers.
Federal ministers Shau-kat Tarin, Asad Umar, Ha-mmad Azhar, Makhdoom Khusru Bakhtiar, Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, Adviser on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood, Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Minister of State Farrukh Habib, Special Assistant Dr Shahbaz Gill and other senior officials were also present during the meeting, the PM Office Media Wing said in a press release.
The industrialists, who attended the meeting, included Saqib Shirazi (Honda Atlas), Ali Asghar Jamali (Indus Motors), Ghayyas-ud-din Khan (Engro), Sikandar Mustafa (Millat Tractors), Hamid Zaman (SEFAM), Shahid Abdullah (Sapphire), Khurram Mukhtar (Pakistan Textile Exporters Association), Zahid Bashir (Gul Ahmad), Azam Farooq (Chirat Cement), Khalil Sattar (K&N), and Abdul Raheem and Gohar Ejaz (APTMA).
The prime minister further observed that the textile exports policy had been a part and parcel of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s manifesto, prior to coming into the government and now its impacts were being apparently felt.
Due to the business friendly policies of its government, ten top companies of the country had posted a profit of Rs 929 billion last year, he said, adding the PTI’s government had taken historic steps for the promotion of investment and businesses, which had never been introduced by any past government. He observed that trickle down effects of such record profit should also reach to the labour community.
“The textile sector exports have reached the historic level of $21 billion and it is expected to touch $26 billion in the next year,” a press release in Urdu language quoted the prime minister as saying.
The prime minister said Pakistan had become the fourth largest motorcycle manufacturing country in the world. The production of tractors witnessed an increase of 10 per cent whereas its 90 per cent parts were being locally manufactured.
He underlined the need to further focus on defence production and engineering sectors, besides promotion of information technology and textile.
The prime minister also thanked the industrialists and traders who had increased wages of their employees on his appeal.
He said he was holding consultations with the business community ahead of his visit to China. The government would stress upon joint ventures between the Pakistani and Chinese industrialists, he added.
The prime minister observed that huge opportunities existed in the IT, agriculture, livestock, machinery and textile sectors to further increase the country’s exports.
During the meeting, Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa referring to huge opportunities in the defence production sector, underlined the importance of public-private partnership collaboration. He also assured to fully support the government’s policies for the progress of country.
The industrialists also extended full support to the government’s business friendly policies and assured to pass on the impacts of their profit earning to the lower tier.
On the occasion, the delegation presented certain suggestions over increase in exports, promotion of small and medium entrepreneurs, improvement in the tax system and the prime minister’s upcoming visit to China.
