Minister says hundreds of CCORR reforms are under way to cut bottlenecks, support SMEs
Federal Minister for Investment and Board of Investment (BOI) Chairman Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh. PHOTO: FILE
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan is shifting from a subsidy-driven approach to a strategy-led model centred on competitiveness, export-led growth and value-added production, Federal Minister for the Board of Investment (BoI) Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh said on Wednesday.
He was speaking at the Pakistan Governance Forum organised by the Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, where he chaired a session titled “From Subsidies to Strategy: Delivering Competitiveness Through Reform”. An official statement said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif inaugurated the forum and underscored the government’s commitment to structural reforms, governance improvement and sustainable economic growth.
Sheikh said moving up the value chain and expanding value-added exports were central to economic transformation. He said structural reforms were needed to move beyond short-term stabilisation towards long-term growth, and stressed the need for regulatory clarity, predictability and institutional coordination to attract domestic and foreign investment.
The session, moderated by Ambreen Waheed of the Planning Commission, discussed reforms to Pakistan’s regulatory landscape to strengthen competitiveness and improve the business climate. Panellists included Manzoor Ahmed of World Trade Advisors, Louie Dane of the FCDO, Rabeel Warraich of Sarmayacar and World Bank economist Anna Twum.
The minister said the BoI, working under the Cabinet Committee on Regulatory Reforms, had rolled out reform packages and that hundreds of measures were at various stages of implementation. He said the aim was to remove regulatory bottlenecks, simplify compliance and modernise outdated legal frameworks.
Sheikh described small and medium enterprises as the backbone of the economy and said they should be supported through simpler regulations, easier market access and integration into export value chains. He called for facilitation-oriented governance and urged the Federal Board of Revenue to prioritise business facilitation to strengthen investor confidence.
He said he had served as president of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry nearly four decades ago, giving him a view of entrepreneurs’ challenges.
He pointed to initiatives such as the Business Facilitation Centre model, which offers one-window services to investors, and said digital transformation in regulatory processes was important.
In closing, Sheikh said the BoI remained committed to advancing regulatory reforms and promoting export-led growth.
