KARACHI, Sept 16: The USAID has launched the Pakistan Initiative for Strategic Development and Competitiveness Fund that has generated a set of recommendations for promoting dairy, marble and granite and gems and jewellery.
Under this project, strategic working groups (SWOGs) of each of the three targeted industries -— dairy, marble and granite and gems and jewellery — have been formed.
The leaders of three SWOGs on Friday held a brainstorming session with a Smeda official in the presence of US envoy to Pakistan Ryan C. Crocker, US Consul General in Karachi Mary Witt, USAID Director Lisa Chiles and the media.
Mr Crocker in his remarks said that a financial package of $1.5 billion was being offered for the next five years to Pakistan.
The government-private sector dialogue is an important component of the project for which $1.5 billion are being offered. Under this package, the US is providing assistance in education, healthcare, governance and promotion of competitiveness of the industry.
Lisa Chiles said that $200 million would be given to the Pakistan government every year for the budgetary support. Another sum of $50 million will be given to education and health, and $66 million for good governance. Under this programme, seminars and programmes will be held to strengthen political parties.
Leaders of the three industries said that the continuous dialogue between the government and the private sector had led to significant policy reforms.
The dairy sector leader informed the gathering that duties on packaging materials for dairy and food products had been reduced considerably. The duties on folding cartons and aluminium foil have been reduced from 25 to 15 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively.
Similarly, the government has abolished duties on milk chillers of less than 3,000 litres capacity to help collect milk from the rural areas. Customs duty on marbles and granites has been reduced to five per cent. Sales tax on imported machinery used in mine development and extraction has been eliminated.
