Asurvey carried out by the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI) has pinpointed five major hurdles to the growth of business and investment in the country. The ‘Perception and Invest Survey 2019’ lists sharp devaluation of rupee, increased tax burden, gap between policies and their implementation, cost of doing business and increase in the interest rates as the main concerns of the business community. The findings of the survey are not revelations as these issues have repeatedly been agitated by all segments of the business community but so far there is no satisfactory solution to their woes. Rupee devaluation was done on the premise that it would lead to a substantial boost in exports but exports are not picking up and the figures of January 2020 are all the more worrisome as exports decreased by $61 million to $1.973 billion as compared to corresponding period last year. And how exports can grow when the cost of inputs is increasing with the passage of time and there are no worthwhile efforts aimed at value-addition and diversification of products and export markets. Additional taxes imposed during the last two years have also rendered our exports uncompetitive in the international market. Prime Minister Imran Khan had hinted at the possibility of a cut in the interest rate but the State Bank has left the rate unchanged for the latest quarter. There is no doubt that the present Government has introduced some of the policies with potential to make a difference but as lamented by the OICCI the pace of implementation leaves much to be desired. The Prime Minister might consider having interactive sessions with representative bodies of the business community so that, at least, a new beginning could be made from the next budget.
