Prime Minister Imran Khan said that he intended to mimic Silicon Valley’s success and make Pakistan a magnet for new firms, emphasizing the importance of startups and export-oriented small businesses to the country’s economic progress.
Prime Minister Imran Khan promised to take strong action against government departments and personnel who obstruct the formation of new startups and export-oriented firms during the unveiling of the National Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) policy.
The PM indicated that new incentives would be offered to such enterprises, which he felt had previously been overlooked: “We are giving SMEs bank credit facility, land for their businesses on lease and [are committed to] eradicating red tapism.”
PM Khan stated that the SME sector was the largest source of employment and contributed significantly to wealth creation.
Giving the example of Silicon Valley — the hub of startups and global technology companies in the US — he said youngsters around the world had become billionaires thanks to IT-related startups.
He said the government was facilitating young people in obtaining credit and other facilities and said he was happy that “$500 million investment in Pakistani startups is coming in from abroad”. This, he said, meant the country was heading in the right direction.
He claimed that thanks to IT-related businesses, young people all over the world have become billionaires, using Silicon Valley as an example. Silicon Valley is the US’s center for startups and worldwide technology companies.
The Prime Minister stated that the administration is working to minimize rules for SMEs in order to help them. He specifically mentioned the no-objection certificate (NOC) system, stating that business inspections would be expedited utilizing the most up-to-date computerized technology.
He noted that the government had inherited a slew of economic issues, but that despite the difficulties, the country’s exports, remittances, and tax collection records had all reached new highs.
He also ordered the authorities to work closely together and undertake a coordinated campaign to improve cities including as Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, and Gujranwala.
Information Minister Ch Fawad Hussain, Industries Minister Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtyar, and Planning Minister Asad Umar were present at the meeting.
Shafqat Mahmood, Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar, and Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar all joined the meeting via video link.
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