Islamabad: Coordinator to the Prime Minister for Commerce and Industries, Rana Ihsan Afzal Khan, said on Saturday that boosting the exports is a priority for the government.
Talking to a private news channel, he said that the government’s policies aim to increase exports to $60 billion over the next five years.
To achieve this goal, the government was creating a conducive environment to boost export growth, he added.
He said that the measures, including increasing the tax rates on real estate, were taken to divert the funds towards productive sectors, such as exports.
Pakistan has an import tariff of 20 percent, by reducing this rate, domestic manufacturers were expected to focus more on exports, he added.
Over 10,000 local manufacturers and enterprises in various sectors will receive training under the small medium enterprises (SME) initiative to achieve this goal, he further added.
He said that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has also introduced a refund policy for exporters, ensuring prompt proce
ssing of refunds.
The government plans to expand the tax net by targeting sectors that currently evade taxes. Only with a broader tax base can tax rates be reduced, he added.