Islamabad: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed that effective measures be taken to eliminate unnecessary delays in trade processes, reduce the cost of doing business, and promote exports. He was chairing the first meeting of the Trade Facilitation Board in Islamabad.
According to Radio Pakistan, the Prime Minister stated that the government is committed to providing all possible facilities to the business community and promoting trade and business activities. Making Pakistan an effective part of regional and global supply chains through trade facilitation is among the government's top priorities. The fundamental objective of the Trade Facilitation Board, he noted, is to remove barriers to trade-related procedures.
Shehbaz Sharif instructed that all relevant institutions at high-volume ports should provide services to the business community at a single location. He also advocated for promoting joint inspections and joint profiling by relevant agencies. Additionally, he directed a comprehensive audit of all non-tariff measures and the removal of unnecessary barriers to trade.
The Prime Minister emphasized bringing direct shipping lines to Pakistani ports, which would expedite the delivery of products from Pakistani factories to global buyers. He also called for the preparation of a National Trade Performance Index to measure key indicators such as cargo dwell time, customs clearance, logistics, ship clearance time, post-clearance audit, and pre-clearance.
In a bid to increase the participation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in international trade, the Prime Minister directed that the trade journey of SMEs be mapped to identify the barriers they face at different stages. He also called for strengthening the risk management system to facilitate trade and extending controls from the pre-arrival to post-release stage to expedite cargo clearance.
Shehbaz Sharif instructed that detailed inspections should be conducted only for high-risk cargo and suggested utilizing artificial intelligence to make risk management more effective and accelerate trade processes. The meeting was briefed on targets under the Time Release Automated System for all ports, setting a goal for thirty percent pre-arrival clearance by the end of the current financial year and increasing the share of the green channel to sixty-five percent.
Furthermore, the number of Authorized Economic Operators is targeted to be increased to over fifty by the end of the current financial year. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved the targets set under the Time Release Automated System for all ports and endorsed the formation of a working group to review non-tariff measures. He directed the group to present a roadmap within one month for eliminating unnecessary regulations and facilitating trade.