ISLAMABAD, Aug 15: The government is finalising an `export plan’ to increase Pakistan's exports from $16.5 billion to $40 billion during the next five years. "A decision has been taken to enhance our exports from 13 per cent of GDP to 15 per cent in the next five years for which we are currently preparing blueprints for the export plan," said Dr Akram Sheikh, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission.

Talking to Dawn, he said the proposed plan would be ready in two months for approval by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and added that last week he held a first meeting with all stakeholders, including private sector representatives, exporters, lines ministries and other departments concerned with a view to working out what he termed "certain practical export plan".

Responding to a question, the deputy chairman said in next few meetings with the stakeholders a number of new products would be identified for their value addition and ultimately for their exports.

"We are conscious of the fact that without identifying new products we cannot achieve $40 billion target in the next five years," Dr Sheikh said, adding that the government needed to study potential and strength of its infrastructure, technologies and manpower with a view to increasing its exports to 15 per cent of GDP.

He said once the draft of export plan was finalised, the government would look into the issue of extending further incentives and concessions to the private sector for substantially enhancing country's exports. “Since the private sector has to become the real engine of growth, the government will very much like to facilitate it in a big way,” he assured.

However, he said there was also a need to pinpoint various weaknesses and constraints which were becoming a hurdle in the way of significantly increasing Pakistan's exports. "We will evolve a consensus in our future meetings with the stakeholders with a view to achieving our objectives of enhancing exports."

He said Pakistan had to compete in the international market by exporting quality products and that without achieving international standards it would be difficult to enhance these exports.

In reply to another question, Dr Sheikh said the manufacturing and industrial sector was suffering from various structural problems resulting in slow growth rate of output and exports, low levels of investment, high concentration of manufacturing industries, technical inefficiencies, poor quality of products, low level of research and development activities, making Pakistani products uncompetitive in the world markets.

In this regard he referred to "strategic directions to achieve vision 2030" of the Planning Commission, according to which the share of medium and high technology in overall manufacturing value added was approximately 35 per cent of Pakistan compared with around 58 per cent for India and China, 61 per cent for Korea and 65 per cent for Malaysia. The share of high technology goods in manufactured exports remains low at one per cent compared with five per cent for India, 23 per cent for China, 32 per cent for Korea and 58 per cent for Malaysia.

The vision seeks to devise an export led industrial growth strategy and study threats to domestic businesses and industry from the point of identifying appropriate restructuring and business improvement required. It also called for examining the incentives and policies needed for pioneering industries, whether they are 'new' products, processes or technologies, so that the range of activities are expanded. "This should be clearly distinguished from the incentives for small and medium enterprises which relate to size, rather than growth of specialisation," the vision added.