Regulatory reforms by provinces: Dawood reviews progress, briefing on implementation

ISLAMABAD: The fifth Steering Committee meeting on Pakistan Regulatory Modernization Initiative (PRMI) was held under the chair of Abdul Razak Dawood, Advisor to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment at the Board of Investment (BoI), here on Wednesday to review progress, briefing on implementation of regulatory reforms by provinces and review of regulatory guillotine activity under the NCC on SMEs.

The Advisor to PM on Institutional Reforms and Austerity, Dr Ishrat Hussain, Chairman BOI, secretary Industries and Production, Member FBR, provincial secretaries of Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan, Director General ICT, representatives of private sector i.e. PBC, FPCCI, OICCI, and Pakistan’s international development partners World Bank and British High Commission, attended the meeting in person and virtually.

Additional Secretary BoI, Mukarram Jah Ansari apprised the forum on the status of regulatory mapping which as of now stands at 1,400 regulations.

He stated that mapping is an ongoing exercise and a repository of the mapped regulations is available on PRMI website.

As for the regulatory guillotine, Mukarram shared that the BOI has formally started its implementation parallel to PRMI.

The BoI with the help of the private sector has identified over 200 issues being faced by business fraternity at federal and provincial levels.

The vetting of the shared issues has been initiated with meetings of the constituted working groups and multiple proposals for resolution of the highlighted concerns have been approved.

Provincial representatives of KP, Sindh, Punjab, Balochistan and AJK shared progress review of their respective provinces pertaining to implementation of reforms initiatives and timelines.

The various implemented reforms are geared towards offering respite to the business fraternity which will also promote private sector development and market-led economy.

Advisor to the PM on Commerce and Investment, Abdul Razak Dawood expressed satisfaction with performance of stakeholders and recommended a reservoir of implemented reforms be formulated.

Dr Ishrat Hussain highlighted the need to follow a strategy that prioritises identification of high impact regulations that will have visible benefits for the business community.

Mukarram on the subject of PRMI Strategy Document briefed the participants that multiple consultation sessions have been held with public, private sector, and international development partners for review in terms of changes and improvements.

The Steering Committee has approved the PRMI Strategy Document for publication and dissemination among all stakeholders.

MOS/Chairman BoI Atif Bokhari also acknowledged the efforts of the stakeholders and reaffirmed federal and provincial governments’ commitment to improve the business climate of the country through continued regulatory reforms.

He stated that the BoI in consultation with all the stakeholders is focusing on the business-related issues and challenges following supply and demand side approaches.

The meeting concluded with the committee’s resolve to expedite the ongoing regulatory journey.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021