ISLAMABAD, May 30: Pakistan has submitted initial offers list to the WTO Secretariat by opening up almost all major sectors and sub-sectors to foreign services providers (FSPs) aimed at increasing the share of services in the domestic economy. Officials told Dawn on Monday that this offer was conditional to the market access Pakistan receives in other areas of negotiations as well. “We retain the right to add, remove or modify any element of the offer until a final agreement that meets Pakistan’s objectives is reached.”

Pakistan has made 10 liberalization commitments out of 12 sectors under the GATS. These include business services, communications, construction/engineering services, financial services, health and tourism, veterinary, education, accounting and legal services.

There are four ways or modes of supply of trade in services — mode-1 or cross border, mode-2 or consumption abroad, mode-3 or commercial presence and mode-4 or temporary movement (presence of natural person under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). Under the commercial presence (mode 3), restriction on acquisition of real estate by non-Pakistani entities has been removed; in horizontal section, Pakistan has increased its equity limit from 51 per cent to 60 per cent.

Temporary entry and stay (mode-4): Pakistan has defined categories for intra-corporate transferees and business visitors to facilitate the temporary entry of business visitors and other service suppliers. Reasonable/ generous time periods have been allocated to facilitate such temporary stays and visits.

“This is a priority area for Pakistan and we will be closely watching other revised offers before putting in our final revised offers,” added the officials. According to them, Pakistan maintained its MFN exemptions in telecom and financial services and was willing to consider their removal provided other members removed theirs as well.

In the professional services, initial offers have improved market access by deleting limitations requirements in existing commitments while in addition new commitments have been made as well. In the engineering services, the equity limit has been raised to 51 per cent from 40 per cent; in the integrated engineering, equity limit has been raised to 51 per cent and equity and partnership restrictions have been removed for companies registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP).

Similarly, in computer and related services, all limitations have been removed in (mode-1); in telecommunications, the limitations have been removed and mobile telephone services added to it; in the construction and related engineering services, limitations in mode-1 and mode-2 were removed; in financial services, the market access considerably improved in (mode 3); in tourism services, the market access improved in mode-1 and mode-2 in hotels and restaurants; in travel agencies and tour operator services, the market access limitations were removed in modes 1 and 2.

The new sectors offered to the FSPs (in business services category) are legal services and accounting, auditing and bookkeeping services, architectural services, veterinary services and services provided by midwives, nurses, physiotherapists and Para medics; computer related services, R&D services, rental and leasing services, printing and publishing, agriculture storage facilities and range land services.

In communications, commitments have been made in courier services. Extensive improvements were introduced in the telecommunication services. In construction and related engineering services, improvements have been made.

Pakistan also opened new areas in distribution services, educational services, environmental services, improvements in financial services, communication services, courier services, wholesale services, retailing services, and franchising services.

Following the submission of the initial offer list to the WTO, Pakistan will now start bilateral negotiations with other WTO member countries for getting offers of their interest from them before finalizing the final list for submission. The share of services in the GDP of Pakistan is now about 51 per cent. The share of services in GDP of developed countries is about 75 per cent.