Dr Hafeez meets ABC members

Finance Minister, Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh accompanied by the Secretary Finance, Dr Waqar Masood Khan and Chairman FBR, Salman Siddique met with the members of the ABC and their guests in Karachi. The ABC representatives were also invited to participate in a meeting of the Revenue Advisory Council (RAC) in Islamabad on Monday.
Formed in 1984, the ABC is a chamber of US Businesses in Pakistan - it is the only single country Chamber - and the largest group of single country overseas investors in Pakistan. Its 67 members comprise of mostly Fortune 500 companies that are amongst the business leaders both in Pakistan and across the world.
In his welcome note, the President ABC, Humayun Bashir, addressed the concerns of the member companies and outlined the need for the government to clearly define their economic roadmap and look into credible plans to increase the tax net. Referring to the ABC's Federal Budget proposals submitted earlier this year, Bashir requested addressing the issues, as growing the economy is the only way forward for progress. Bashir also highlighted the ABC vision 'behind ABC proposals, namely:
a) Every earning member should be paying tax, b) Have a simple taxation structure, c) Taxation should be competitive vis-à-vis other countries. The finance minister welcomed the opportunity for a frank and open discussion with the business community via the ABC and expressed an interest in their thoughts and guidance on pressing issues which he hoped would be reviewed and if possible resolved. Acknowledging the issues inherited by the present government, including lack of foreign investment, the diversion of resources away from infrastructure and social development, uneasy political transitions and unprecedented natural calamities, Dr Shaikh stated that the sentiment in the country should be positive.
The minister also reiterated the government's vision of an economic roadmap via the contents of the last Federal Budget - to maintain stability, protect the recovery process, increase growth trajectory, tighten government expenditure and try and generate new sources of revenue and protect the poor during this transition.
He emphasised the government's commitment to get back on the path to growth and said that even though our GDP will not exceed 2.5/3 as opposed to the predicted 4.5, and inflation will remain high, there have been encouraging statistics emerging as exports have increased significantly, remittances are good and the pricing of commodities has been on par with an international level.
The members of the ABC also took the opportunity to reiterate their tax proposals and remained engaged in an interactive Q&A session with the minister, secretary finance and the chairman FBR. The ABC recognises and lauds the efforts being made by the government in engaging with the business community and hopes for a continuation of these efforts in the long-term on a regular basis.-PR