LAHORE: The provincial industries, commerce and investment department plans to allow “international ease of doing business” to attract investments from home and abroad, facilitate entrepreneurship and create some 350,000 jobs in line with the prime minister’s vision of poverty alleviation.

The department has already got its industrial policy approved from the Punjab cabinet aimed at setting the direction for the industry besides ensuring 10 per cent industrial growth annually, said Industries Minister Mian Aslam Iqbal while elaborating his department’s 100-day achievements at a news conference here on Tuesday.

Claiming that policy reforms had been made to create an enabling environment for the industry, Mr Iqbal said collaboration with foreign investors had started bearing fruit as Foton China (manufacturer of commercial trucks) was investing $150 million. He added that it would also manufacture trucks and passenger vehicles with an investment of $900m.

Similarly, he said, a joint venture by Deli Glassware China and Haier Pakistan had begun working in Faisalabad with $200m. “Glassware production will begin in a couple of months,” he added.

Besides foreign investment, the minister said, the industries department had an ambitious plan to promote the neglected small and medium enterprise sector by launching three initiatives for establishing new businesses and supporting the existing ones.

“The industries department will fund some 3,000 new start-ups, 8,000 loan mark-up support programme and 6,000 credit guarantee scheme – with the Punjab government’s investment of Rs11.5 billion,” the minister said. Investors had been offered zero duty for importing machinery to set up industrial units and run businesses in Punjab, he added.

He further said that the government would offer up to Rs3m to a new start-up out of which 20pc would be contributed by the entrepreneur. Women would have to contribute 10pc to the investment amount. The operational cost for women entrepreneurs will be 1pc less than their male counterparts. Women will start repaying this loan after nine months against six months for men, he added.

“The three SME sector initiatives will create around 166,000 direct employments,” Mr Iqbal claimed.

He announced inspector-less regime for industries to ensure that no official went and disturbed the private industry, adding that this was a major complaint by traders. Similarly, the government had decided to abolish licence fee for weight and measures for vendors and small shopkeepers.

“This fee abolition will benefit some 200,000 venders and shopkeepers with the financial impact of Rs40m for the government.”

He said seven special economic zones had been established, and requested the Board of Investment for their notification. In order to improve, standardise and consolidate the skilled labour, the minister said Punjab Skills Development Authority had been established to monitor the affairs of the Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority, Punjab Vocational Training Council and Punjab Skills Development Fund under one roof.

The minister announced that his department would establish three technical education universities in Rasul, Dera Ghazi Khan and Rawalpindi besides operationalising the one already established in Lahore. Bills regarding two of these varsities would be tabled in the Punjab Assembly soon.

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2018