KARACHI, June 17: The export-oriented industry is seeking remedy in the forthcoming trade policy to some of the irritants with regard to the ‘one window’ facility for collecting federal and provincial taxes. It also seeks announcement by the government of measures that ensure proper utilization of the Export Development Fund (EDF). The fund is meant to finance projects and activities facilitating exports.

There is a growing concern among exporters over the fashion in which the fund is spent. “It is an irony that millions of rupees are being collected from the exporters in the name of EDF but are misused. Actually it should have been used for the development of infrastructure of industrial estates which are in depilated conditions throughout the country,” asserted Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association (PHMA) Chairman Aslam Ahmed Karsaz. “Instead the fund is used for the construction of roads and bridges located outside the industrial estates and for some other purposes which are not directly linked with the export trade, or for promotional activities,” he added.

The industry is confronted with water, power and gas shortages and is in dire need of affluent plants to meet social compliance such as environment, security, safety, healthy, etc. It also faces shortage of skilled manpower. The industry expects this problem to become more serious if remedial steps are not taken and institutions and projects are not started to equip the manpower with skills that needed to support the industrial development.

“The EDF should only be used in resolving issues confronting the export industry and not projects that have no direct link with the industry, he pointed out. Mr Karsaz suggested that the government should utilize the fund as per the ratio of contribution by each segment of the export industry because there were many problems which were needed to be resolved.

Mohammad Naqi Bari, Chairman, industry and privatization sub-committee of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the government should take measures to reduce number of agencies and departments the exporters had to deal with. “There are some 36 such agencies (federal and provincial) which are a huge financial burden on the export-oriented industry,” he said.

He said that agencies like SESSI, EOBI, Labour Department, Weigh and Measures, Civil Defence, etc., were ‘parasite’ and the government should immediately do away with these redundant bodies and instead opt for ‘one window’ at a fixed tax rate.

Mr Bari said that in a competitive world the exporters could not afford to spend time on dealing with these agencies that

EDF’s proper utilization demanded asked for more than their due from trade and industry and often their inspectors harassed industrialists and exporters.

Dawood Usman Jakhura, Chairman, Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association, urged the government to have a proper representation on the board of Export Development Fund. He said heads of trade bodies should be included in the board.

He said presently the biggest problem for the value-added textile industry was with regard to affluent treatment plants which they could not individually afford and it should be taken with the help of the government by using the EDF. “These plants are not only expensive but also are difficult to be run individually.” He demanded that such plants be run on community basis and on no-profit no-loss theory.

Business leaders were unanimous in their view that the government should make the EDF transparent and annual audit should be made and disclosed to all the stakeholders who should also have a say in its spending and approval.