Finance minister Shaukat Tarin has said that the implementation of the Pakistan Single Window (PSW) will unlock the country’s potential in becoming a hub for regional as well as international trade and transit.

The remarks were made while presiding over the first meeting of the Governing Council of PSW on Friday, read a statement.

Secretary of the Governing Council briefed about the PSW, a virtual system which is connecting the concerned Ministries, Customs, port authorities, banks, and other relevant departments after major process re-engineering to provide a single window for management of international trade.

The PSW is a facility that allows parties involved in trade and transport in Pakistan to lodge standardised information and documents at a single registration point. This eliminates hidden costs and removes inefficiencies in the governance of international trade including logistics, added the statement.

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The first phase of the PSW program has been rolled out while its 2nd and 3rd phases will be completed within the next two years.

Over 75 regulatory departments will be fully integrated through ICT based system, providing a single point of entry to facilitate trading across borders with minimal need for any physical contact.

In his remarks, Tarin appreciated the progress and stated that PSW will reduce time, cost, and complications while contributing significantly towards ease of doing business in the country.

He said that the reforms being undertaken under the PSW program will promote trade competitiveness with enhanced transparency and efficiency. Commending the efforts of Pakistan Customs as the lead agency of the PSW program, the finance minister said that the project will take Pakistan’s trade to the next level.