ISLAMABAD: Advisor to Prime Minister on Finance Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh will visit Lahore tomorrow (Saturday) to discuss in detail matters of mutual interests with the business community and seek final proposals regarding the upcoming federal budget.
“The advisor will also take the business community into confidence regarding the decision-making process so that the national agenda, which is to bring about economic stability in the country, could be prepared,” said Pak-US Business Council President and United Business Group (UBG) Chairman Iftikhar Ali Malik on Friday.
He said the business community is well aware of the critical economic situation of the country and is ready to extend full support to the government in its endeavours to bring the country out of the quagmire of economic crises.
The UBG chairman recalled that the prime minister had already held fruitful meetings with Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Eng Daroo Khan Achakzai and other top officials of the private sector a couple of days ago in Islamabad to exchange views on the national economy.
He maintained that Hafeez Shaikh, in line with the policy of the prime minister, is taking the business community into confidence so that good understanding could be cultivated and a viable strategy to address their all legitimate grievances of the business community could be developed.
Malik said Hafeez Sheikh is a seasoned economist and under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan, the businessmen are confident that “the economic team of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government would put Pakistan’s economy back on track”.
He said the business community would suggest Hafeez Sheikh support the agriculture sector and small medium enterprises (SMEs) in order to create job opportunities, besides focusing on increasing the volume of exports to meet the economic challenges.
“We will also urge the government to create an export development fund so that industrial exhibitions could be organised and foreign investors could be attracted,” he stated, adding that in order to earn more dollars, the government should focus on improving the volume of exports, remittances and investment, besides curtailing unnecessary imports.
