President stresses active role of public, private sectors in economy documentation

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi on Wednesday called upon the public and private sectors to join hands in supporting the government’s efforts for the documentation of national economy.

He urged the businessmen to play an active role in encouraging business community to pay taxes so that budget deficit could be reduced and more funds be allocated for development work.

The president expressed these views while talking to a delegation of Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industries (LCC&I) led by President LCC&I, Mian Tariq Misbah-ur-Rehman, here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr.

President Alvi said the government was committed to provide a competitive and fair business environment to entrepreneurs and build a sustainable economy.

He stated that the government was taking care of business community and under-privileged sections of society and, in this regard, had provided historic stimulus package of Rs. 1.2 Trillion as economic relief to help business community and poor strata of society.

The president assured the delegation that he would ask the concerned quarters to help address their problems.

The President said the country’s economy despite the pandemic was performing well as is evident from the increase in tax collection and a surge in exports.

Expressing satisfaction over the economic performance, the President said that the country’s exports during the last 10 months grew by 13 percent to $20.879 billion as compared to $18.408 billion during the corresponding period last year.

Similarly, the revenue collection exceeded its target of Rs. 3.637 trillion by more than Rs. 143 billion during the last 10 months of the current Fiscal Year. He stated that the business-friendly policy of the government led to an improvement in Ease of Doing Business Index with the country’s ranking going up from 136th positon to 108th position.

The delegation appreciated the economic policies of the government, particularly the historic stimulus package provided during the pandemic. The delegates also informed the President about the problems being faced by the business community.