Upgradation in post-Doha Round scenario: industry criticises government for not extending required help

Pakistani industry, especially sports and surgical, has criticised the government for not extending required assistance to upgrade the industry in the light of possible post-Doha Round scenario. The WTO Cell of the Ministry of Industries, Islamabad, in collaboration with the WTO Cell and Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) held a seminar titled "General awareness about WTO and surgical sports industry of Pakistan with respect to Non Agricultural Market Access (NAMA)."
Ministry of Industries team was led by Mrs Shaista Sohail, Joint Secretary, Policy and Planning Wing. Other members of the team were Ms Seema Raza Bokhari, Chief WTO, Muhammad Akram Raza, NAMA Specialist and Abubakar Farooq, Economist/Trade Analyst. Ghulam Mustafa Chaudhry, President SCCI, Chairman Pakistan Sports Goods Association (PSGS), Chairman Surgical Instrument Association, Executive members of the SCCI and representatives of surgical instruments and sports goods manufacturing companies, officials from concerned departments/organisations also participated in the seminar.
Ms Seema Raza Bokhari (Chief WTO) briefed the participants about WTO and its implications for Pakistan. She said that when the Doha Round is finalised, Pakistan will have to reduce tariffs as per the Swiss formula in the NAMA Agreement. She maintained that Pakistan being a developing country will have the right to exercise flexible options depending upon the coefficient it chooses to apply in the Swiss Formula. Ms Seema said the proposed implementation timeline is 10 years for developing countries from the year following the year NAMA is finalised as opposed to five years for the developed countries thus providing cushion and policy space for improving competitiveness and productivity of domestic industry.
She highlighted the implications of NAMA for Pakistan's local industry especially for sports & surgical sectors in Sialkot, being the hub of exports in Sialkot. She emphasised that the technical standards were a matter of great significance and would be crucial under the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT). She suggested that Pakistan needed to bring its production methods and processes up to recognised world standards so as to be able to meet the requisite quality standards in international markets.
The participants feared that this can become a major impediment for developing countries in making meaningful use of market access and the industrialists need to prepare for the challenges ahead. Ghulam Mustafa Chaudhry, President SCCI revealed that Sialkot has about 7000 SMEs producing exportable products especially sports and surgical items worth of $1.25 billion.
The SCCI President and representatives from the sports and surgical sectors requested strong and committed government support to develop new products, brands and establish training institutes, particularly for sports and surgical sectors in Sialkot. They emphasised that the industry in Sialkot was committed to taking up challenges. In this regard, they highlighted some initiatives being taken by them to improve technology and standards.