PESHAWAR: Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Fazal Moqeem Khan has called for concrete steps to improve Pakistan’s trade volume with Central Asian Republics.

Talking to a representative delegation of Azerbaijan and Turkiye at the chamber house here on Friday, Mr Moqeem said Peshawar was a gateway for trade and export to Afghanistan and CARs.

The meeting was attended by SCCI senior vice-president Abdul Jalil Jan, secretary general Muqtasid Ahsan, executive committee member Ashfaq Ahmad, and a representative from Turkiye, Mohammad Afzal.

The SCCI chief said traders from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa mostly depended on trade with Afghanistan and CARs. He, however, said cross-border and transit trade had been adversely affected owing to inconsistent policies and imposition of heavy duties/tariffs by both the governments. He called for reviewing such policies.

Mr Moqeem also mentioned about imposition of Infrastructure Development Cess on exports by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government, saying that the move had shifted exports from KP to other provinces. He demanded abolition of IDC.

Earlier, the delegation briefed the SCCI president about initiatives for improving Pakistan’s trade with Azerbaijan and Turkiye.

Mr Moqeem urged the federal and provincial governments to provide facilities to investors under a one-window operation.

Published in Dawn, December 21st, 2024