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July 09, 2008	Wednesday	Rajab 5, 1429

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KARACHI, July 8: The Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA), a national standards body to interact with world quality control organisations, has no representation on the board of Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP).

As a result of this major flaw in functioning of TDAP, the country’s share in the world market is not expanding because countries around the world are increasingly using Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBTs) as the best course for protecting their domestic markets, ministry of science and technology sources said.

The government in pursuance of good practices to promote the exports of the country had constituted the TDAP replacing export promotion bureau (EPB). This substitution seems to be a well considered decision of the government after deliberations with the stakeholders and taking in view the imperatives of international trade.

Consequently, the TDAP, under market-based global economy, has to cater to the needs of increasing and diversifying exports, which will focus on exposure of country’s products, market access and prepare the private sector for meeting the challenges of NTBs and TBTs.

These barriers as covered by the scope of WTO agreement, sources are to be dealt by PSQCA on account of its functional position as NSB granted by the legislation.

Sources said that trade policies issued by the government through ministry of commerce also provide many incentives, which are more or less related to compounding of TBTs and NTBs having their impact on market access. The Doha Round and its likely completion is to promise market access, but that will not provide any exception to application of NTBs or TBTs “if we have to export and import merchandise in our own national interest,” ministry sources said.

By inducting a PSQCA representative on the TDAP board will not only help to enhance country’s market share in the world trade but it will also assist to indemnify the present trends in which countries are considering non-tariff barriers and technical barriers to trade as the best course for protecting the domestic markets in the national interest.