Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry has welcomed Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s decision to constitute the National Economic Council (NEC) in a bid to deal with the financial crisis. In a letter to Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, LCCI President Mian Nauman Kabir said that the constitution of National Economic Council, is a step in the right direction but the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry should also be taken on board in NEC.
Kabir said that Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry highly appreciates the formation of the National Economic Council envisioned by the Prime Minister. He said that this would be a great platform and certainly play a pivotal role in uplifting the trajectory of national economic development.
The LCCI president suggested that the National Economic Council should make long term policies / plans for at least 10 years, be given legal cover and an implementation mechanism should also be developed. He said that an international trade framework should be established to monitor the imports and exports of the country and ensure that they complement each other.
Kabir said that there is a dire need to revisit Pakistan’s energy mix by generating a major part of electricity from coal and renewable energy sources so that the reliance on costly imported fuel may be minimised.
He said that the business / trade policies should be chalked out in such a manner that they provide an enabling environment for the local industry to become part of the global value chain.
Kabir further stated that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif took the charge at a critical time along with a bundle of economic challenges.—TLTP
