Cargo containers for Afghanistan: FBR’s decision to end satellite tracking irks PBC

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Business Council (PBC) has expressed serious concern over Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) decision to terminate the satellite tracking of transit cargo containers destined for Afghanistan.

In a communication to Chairman FBR Rashid Mahmood Langrial, the PBC stated that it is with deep concern that we learn of the FBR’s decision to terminate the satellite tracking of transit cargo containers destined for Afghanistan. Reliance on Customs resources to physically monitor movement and placing tracking devices in prime mover trucks instead of on the containers will enhance the risk of cargo diversion.

Misuse of the transit trade arrangements causes loss of tax revenue, undermines local industry, and impacts employment. On several occasions, the Pakistan Business Council has recommended measures to reduce the incidence and magnitude of diversion. This included tracking containers beyond the Pakistan/Afghanistan border and verifying that returning containers were empty. Without monitoring devices on the container locks, there is no technical certainty that the prime mover trucks will carry the cargo they are meant to, as containers may be switched through collusion, PBC maintained.

The PBC has requested the FBR that the stakeholders be informed about how quickly the technology required to ensure that transit cargo leaves and does not return to Pakistan can be deployed. Also, how will the process you intend to follow in the interim and the people you plan to use provide adequate comfort regarding the loss of tax revenue and the impact on the formal sector in Pakistan? In other words, how will the “People, Process, Technology” approach of transforming the FBR apply to track transit containers? PBC added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025