LONDON, Nov 27: State Minister for Commerce Hamid Yar Hiraj has said efforts are being mounted to avoid 25 per cent tariff on Pakistan's bedlinen and textile exports by the EU member countries next year.

The special tariff concessions offered by the EU in recognition of Pakistan's key role in fight against terrorism was going to be withdrawn as the EU would introduce a new Generalized System of Preferences Plus (GSP) in February 2005.

He said this while speaking at a dinner hosted in his honour by UK-Pakistan Overseas Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UPOCCI) here late Friday. Hiraj was due to leave for Islamabad later Saturday after attending one-day meeting of International Sugar Organization here on Friday.

Mr Hiraj said that tariff issue had been taken up at the highest level with some of the EU members. But the criterion laid down by the EU under its GSP Plus which called for ratification of many conventions about certain environmental issues and child labour but that was not possible within a short span of time.

The minister said he visited Brussels a month back to lobby with EU countries on the issue but added as more time was required to ratify the said conventions hence we would not be able to get it.

Pakistan was urging the EU which was the second largest market for it after the US, to give it market access which would help boots its exports necessary to further strengthen its economy.

With the new quota-free-era under the WTO regime in place next year, Pakistan was up against heavy odds. Being an agrarian economy, its agriculture sector would require a lot of support to be competitive in the international market, he said.

It is recalled that Pakistan was given 15 per cent market access by EU along with duty free import of all products to the European market a year back. The duty free import was allowed under the GSP which would expire in December this year.

Mr Hiraj urged overseas Pakistanis to benefit from the investor-friendly ambience and invest in the country.

He urged them to visit Expo-2005 being held in Karachi from Feb 2 to 5 to see for themselves what were the potential areas of investment.

Five to six hundred exhibitors of Pakistani products and services would showcase themselves providing opportunity to over 500 visitors from abroad to provide them not only opportunities for joint venture and investment but also portray a soft image of the country through cultural and social event.

There is no requirement of any licence to start business in Pakistan. He told them that following introduction of wide-ranging economic reforms introduced by the government, the private sector had been assigned the crucial role in development of the economy. The government has to be a facilitator hence it was encouraging public-private partnerships because that was the way forward to achieve development in different areas of the economy.

Mr Hiraj talking to APP after attending the 26th meeting of International Sugar Organization Administrative Committee here on Friday said the Pakistan's sugar industry should utilize the country's membership of ISO for bolstering its exports to the European countries.

If the ISO platform was fully used by the sugar industry particularly its Research and Development Common Fund to meet the current international standards there was a great potential to give a real fillip to sugar exports, he added.

Mr Hiraj who flew in here late Thursday to especially attend the meeting to basically decide about the next chairman of the ISO.

Sudan was elected the new chairman of ISO as its nominee Mohammad Al Maqdi, backed by the European Union, was elected its new chairman. Pakistan proposed the name of Abdul Rehman Ozenbas, the chairman of Sugar Board of Turkey for Vice Chairman of the ISO, who was elected unopposed.

Hiraj held a special meeting with ISO Executive Director Dr Peter Barn after conclusion of the meeting and discussed with him matters relating to the sugar industry. He told him that Pakistan would like to organize meetings and seminars, in cooperation with ISO, to bring representatives of its sugar industry on board.-APP