LAHORE: The Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) on Saturday welcomed the resumption of flight operations from Pakistan, terming it “great news” for businesses and economy.
Talking to the media, LCCI President Irfan Iqbal Sheikh said that the business community had received some encouraging news after a long time, as Covid-19 had halted all trade and economic activities in March 2020.
Flight operations from Pakistan were suspended in March when a lockdown was imposed across the country to curb the spread of Covid-19.
“The recommencement of flights from all national and foreign airlines will give impetus to Pakistan’s external trade as well as tourism,” he opined, adding that the implementation of standard operating procedures (SOPs) and guidelines by the government would help address critical challenges pertaining to coronavirus.
Although the Covid-19 pandemic had caused unprecedented losses to global economies, international trade was inching towards normalisation, he noted. “Being a developing country, Pakistan desperately needs to boost its international trade, and flight operations by all the national and foreign airlines will greatly contribute to this cause.”
The LCCI president urged all domestic and international airlines to ensure the implementation of guidelines and SOPs set by the government of Pakistan/destination countries.
He also asked the government to fully facilitate the exporters who have been hit hard by the coronavirus lockdown.
Citing a report, he said the country recorded $1.39 billion in merchandise exports in May, the lowest number in years, and a 34 per cent drop from a year ago.
“Exports are critical to the economic recovery of Pakistan,” he concluded.
