ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday called upon the business community and leading entrepreneurs to come forward and recommend solid measures to the government to revive the economy, contain inflation and promote growth and employment generation in the country.
He called upon the business community and entrepreneurs to prepare a Charter of Economy in consultation with all political parties to address the serious economic challenges facing the country in a non-partisan manner and with consensus and ensuring that the economic policies continued uninterrupted and were not reversed with change in the government.
The President said that challenges were not uncommon and new, adding that all countries had faced challenges. "No outsiders can help us and resolve our problems", he said, adding, "we have to help ourselves and find our own answers to meet the challenges facing the
country."
The President expressed these views during an interactive session with the businessmen and entrepreneurs from all over the country here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr.
Over 60 businessmen participated in the meeting that was also attended by Finance Minister Dr. Abdul Hafeez Sheikh, Commerce Minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim, Minister for Privatization and Water and Power Syed Naveed Qamar, Advisor on Petroleum and Natural Resources Dr. Asim Hussain, Board of Investment Chairman Salim H Mandviwala, federal secretaries, representatives of chambers of commerce and high officials of the Ministry of Finance and other relevant ministries.
Briefing newsmen about the meeting, Spokesperson to the President Farhatullah Babar said that the meeting was part of the brainstorm session with businessmen on the eve of budget making to ascertain the views and seek recommendations of entrepreneurs and businessmen.
The spokesperson said that the President while commenting on the challenges facing the country said that energy shortage, circular debt, taxation reforms, restructuring of public sector entities and documentation of the economy were among the critical issues of the country's economy and asked the business community to help build consensus around these major economic challenges.
The President said that the government inherited an ailing economy which suffered heavy toll due to war against extremism and militancy, and later the unprecedented floods.
The floods alone caused a loss of US $ 10 billion to the economy, the President said and added that the government had taken the economic challenges head on and a plan for economic revival had been devised.
He said that the government was aiming to reducing non-development expenditure to cut expenses, reforming the power sector, restructuring the public sector enterprises, incentivize remittances and developing special programmes for poverty alleviation.
The government firmly believes in taking all stakeholders including the business community of the country on board while framing policies of national importance, he added.
The President while addressing the business-persons said that the business community was an invaluable asset of the country and any meaningful economic development was not possible without their enterprise, cooperation and contribution in the budget formulation exercise.
The spokesperson said that the President urged the business community to come forward and avail the investment friendly liberal incentives package of the government to revive and rebuild the war ravaged economy and also encourage foreign investors to invest in Pakistan.
The President said that the lack of continuity in economic policies was also one of the important aspects in economic instability in the country, adding, the energy sector had suffered the most because of the thoughtless reversal of the energy policies of mid 1990s.
He said that keeping in view the crucial role of continuity of policies in the economic sphere, the role of business community was crucial to provide ownership to the economic policies so that they were not reversed merely of political reasons.
The President said that the government believed that the objective of a growth strategy must be social and human uplift.
With this aim, the government focused on drawing people out of poverty trap, he said and added that BISP, a special poverty alleviation programme, that enjoyed the credibility of donors both within and outside the country, was needed to provide social cover to the poorest of the poor.
The President also recounted many other achievements of the present government vis--vis economic situation. He said that the government and the leadership realized the fact that it was their responsibility to take hard decisions.
The President said that in order to cut down expenses, the government reduced the cabinet size.
The President said the subsidy regime had been rationalized and tax reforms were being introduced with focus on expanding tax net to mobilize resources and generate more revenue.
He said that the government had devolved financial powers to provinces and gave the 7th NFC award after a gap of 19 years which had resulted into transferring over 300 billion rupees of additional revenues to the provinces.
The participants expressed their candid opinions on a host of issues, including measures for revival of the economy, economic growth, agricultural and industrial development, trade and investment, exports development energy crises, tax reforms and broadening the tax net, poverty alleviation, employment generation, growing inflation and other issues and also made their invaluable
suggestions in this regard.
The business community lauded the government's steps for revival of the economy, restoring confidence of the local and foreign investors and also restoring law and order situation.
They also welcomed the decision to have such brainstorming interactive sessions before the budget so that the views and opinions of the business community were also taken into account during formulation of budgetary proposals.
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