President Alvi terms textile sector lynchpin of Pakistan’s economy

FAISALABAD: President Dr. Arif Alvi here on Thursday said that textile sector was the lynchpin of Pakistan’s economy.

Talking to the delegation of All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA) in Faisalabad, Dr. Arif Alvi said that textile sector was contributing 60 per cent in Pakistan’s total exports and 40 per cent in industrial employment.

According to a statement issued from his office, the president appreciated the role being played by private sector, particularly the APTPMA in economic development of the country.

He further said that the government was formulating strategic trade policy framework (STPF) for the next five years with focus on reducing cost of production and encouraging investment into export-oriented sectors.

The president said, “To fully utilize the potential of textile value chain, the government is also drafting textile policy for the period 2019-24.”

He emphasized that business community to play their active role in encouraging businessmen to pay all their taxes so that budget deficit could be reduced and more funds could be allocated for development work.

He expressed his confidence that the combined wisdom of public and private sectors would pave way for prosperous Pakistan.

The president said, “The government is undertaking every possible measure to provide level playing field to the business community.”

He highlighted that the tough economic conditions of the country call for difficult decisions and added that the government was committed to improve the economy.

Dr. Arif Alvi said, “The government is endeavoring to reduce the trade deficit by curbing import of non-essential and luxury items and by reducing the cost of doing business. The Government has rationalized the prices of gas, RLNG and electricity for zero-rated export-oriented sectors i.e. textile, leather, carpets, surgical and sports goods and introduced sales tax zero-rating regime for the same.”