RAWALPINDI, Jan 7: The government is monitoring the exports situation and is on course for meeting the $10 billion target, federal commerce minister Humayun Akhtar Khan said on Tuesday.

He was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the 4th Pakistan Industrial Fair 2003, being held under the auspices of the Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce.

The minister said the present government had inherited a good economic base from its predecessor for bringing in a growth- oriented agenda

He said he would hold discussions with all stakeholders in the country’s economy. This, he said, was important for the sake of continuity of the policies and keeping abreast with the realities.

“Otherwise, it is difficult to find out the reality in Islamabad’s echelons of power, where people give report that everything is fine,” he remarked.

Speaking about the economic conditions in the country, the minister said it was encouraging to note that volume of loans was decreasing, and rupee had gained strong position in the local currency market.

He said the government was fully cognizant of its responsibilities towards improving regional stability and was doing everything for the purpose. However, he said the international community would also have to play its role in this regard.

About trade with Afghanistan, he said it was being regularized, and the concessions provided to businessmen for trade with other countries would also be available in the case of Afghanistan.

Mr Khan supported the idea of a single country exhibition in Afghanistan, floated by the RCCI. He directed the Export Promotion Bureau to explore the possibility for holding such an exhibition in the war-ravaged country, currently undergoing reconstruction. He said besides dealing in the development of infrastructure, the exporters’ companies should also try to participate in this exhibition.

Earlier, in his welcome speech, the RCCI president, Osman Khalid Waheed, urged the government to improve domestic security, check smuggling, develop consensus as part of the decision-making process and decrease cost of inputs for improving the conditions for investment in the country.

He sought the commerce minister’s help for overcoming the problems being confronted by the RCCI in developing its industrial estate. He said the issue of establishing a grid station at the industrial estate and supplying gas needed to be addressed on priority basis by the government.