Karachi, 18 July 2024 – The Senate Standing Committee on Commerce, chaired by Ms. Anousha Rahman, convened today at the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) to assess the progress and future strategies of the organization.
Presiding over the session, Ms. Anousha Rahman was joined by committee members Mr. Samad Ali, MNA, Muhammad Talal Bandar, MNA and other prominent members. Representing TDAP, CEO Zubair Motiwala, DG Aasim Tiwana, and senior management were in attendance.
The committee inquired “what are advancements in the textile, agro, food, minerals and other key sectors, with a specific emphasis on enhancing support for the business community and facilitating them in organizing international trade fairs”. the committee was told by Zubair Motiwala,”AGRO and food has experienced high growth this year particularly due to rice exports and sesame seed”. For textile sector, DG Aasim Tiwana said,” the main problem is high cost of electricity in Pakistan compared to other countries in the region like Bangladesh due to which Pakistan has lost its competitive advantage in them. For leather, there is a specific raw material which has reduced the cost of production worldwide which is being imported in Pakistan”.
The Convener Ms Anousha Rahman specifically asked “what are the functions of mineral division and has it been able to fully evaluate the potential of minerals in Pakistan.”. Upon questioning, she was told,”there’s still untapped resources which are not evaluated in Baluchistan and KP”. She was told by one of members of committee “there is still lot of room and there could be ten more projects like Reko Diq only in Baluchistan”.
The meeting provided a platform for TDAP to showcase its recent achievements in terms of promotion of Pakistans trade in various sectors and discuss challenges faced in promoting Pakistan’s trade sectors. Strategies for further facilitating the business community, particularly in the organization of international trade fairs, were thoroughly examined.
In the end, Ms. Anousha Rahman recommended that in areas like Baluchistan where there is a lot of potential but due to fact that it is not managed by local DG of TDAP, many key resource sites are unknown and untapped. Therefore, a local DG of TDAP from Baluchistan should be appointed to tap these resources. Further, she commended TDAP’s efforts and emphasized the importance of continuous improvement and innovation to keep pace with global trade dynamics. The committee pledged its support to TDAP in enhancing Pakistan’s export potential and economic growth and TDAP assured its support to business community in different sectors and trade fairs.
