PM Shehbaz approves establishment of Trade Facilitation Board

Islamabad (Web Desk): Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday gave the go-ahead for the creation of a Trade Facilitation Board, which he will head himself, with the objective of making trade procedures more efficient and removing non-tariff hurdles affecting cross-border business.

The decision was taken during a meeting chaired by the prime minister to review measures for improving trade facilitation.

PM Shehbaz said that the new body would be empowered to take decisions for strengthening the country’s overall trade supply chain and resolving difficulties faced in international and cross-border commerce.

Officials briefed the meeting that the board would develop a comprehensive roadmap to boost trade, introduce a Trade Facilitation Index and establish a system to regularly assess and track progress.

The prime minister called for urgent measures to increase the handling capacity of Pakistan’s ports and instructed authorities to form dedicated working groups to advance the initiative.

These groups will examine ways to expand port capacity, strengthen coordination between concerned institutions, ensure adherence to existing regulations, improve pre-arrival clearance arrangements and encourage greater involvement of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in global trade.

PM Shehbaz also ordered authorities to make transportation, clearance and other port-related processes easier for importers and exporters, stressing that the business community should receive the greatest possible level of facilitation.

The briefing revealed that reforms already introduced in the sector had brought down port-related charges and contributed to a notable rise in the use of port facilities.

The meeting was also informed that the system allowing Goods Declarations to be filed before ships reach port was being gradually extended. The measure is expected to reduce delays and speed up the clearance of consignments.

The meeting was attended by Minister for National Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain, Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan, Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Khan Cheema, Finance and Revenue Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Maritime Affairs Minister Junaid Anwar Chaudhry, Prime Minister’s Adviser on Industries Haroon Akhtar, Minister of State for Finance and Railways Bilal Azhar Kayani and senior officials from various government departments.