FEDERAL Cabinet on Tuesday approved the Strategic Trade Policy Framework (STPF) with a string of policy measures to promote annual export target to $ 57 billion by 2024-25.
As per the policy, separate allocations have been made for improving competitiveness of the products, enhanced market access, diversification and for branding.
An amount of Rs 16.5 has also been earmarked for developing export ecosystem which will include infrastructure development, institutional strengthening, standards compliance and social and environmental safeguards.
Undoubtedly, this is a comprehensive document but it should have not taken the government so long to finalize it when it is left with less than two years in power.
History is a testimony to the fact that policies are always framed in our country but these hardly meet their targets.
Especially when a new government comes to power, it puts to trash the policies of the previous government.
Thus the government must ensure taking requisite steps envisaged in the policy without any delay so that when it leaves the office, the exports are on the path of substantial growth. This will always be remembered as a major achievement of the incumbents.
Our exports have almost remained stagnant over the last ten years ranging between $20 billion to $ 25 billion and thereby reducing the country’s share in the global export market by 10.5%pc. During the same period, China and India enhanced their share in global exports by 27pc and 18pc respectively, whereas Bangladesh registered an impressive growth of 95pc.
Our surging imports on the other side have resulted into a huge trade deficit. The only panacea to our economic woes is to enhance our revenue collection and shift from a consumer country to a production base in order to bolster our exports.
For this, we will have to focus on all the sectors including the industries, agriculture and IT. In fact, we can surpass the export target set in the policy by fully operationalising the Special Economic Zones being set up under the CPEC.
The investors must be fully facilitated to invest in the SEZs through one window operation as well as provision of basic amenities such as gas and electricity to them.
