KARACHI, Oct 19: The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (Smeda) should evolve a reconstruction strategy with the involvement of small and medium enterprises to achieve the objectives of proper rehabilitation of the earthquake victims.

The union of SMEs, calling upon Smeda to open offices in the affected areas, maintained that the involvement of SMEs in the reconstruction and rehabilitation plan would help build the areas in phases and generate jobs. “Such an activity would be the only way to rehabilitate masses of the devastated areas,” Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (Unisame) President Zulfikar Thaver said here on Wednesday.

He said architects, contractors, plumbers, masons, carpenters, designers, electrical contractors, building material suppliers and manufacturers and transporters should be motivated to register themselves with Smeda to initiate the first phase of reconstruction in the affected areas.

The second phase might include setting up or construction of industries or manufacturing units, restaurants, guest houses and super markets, he added.

However, he said United Nations office representatives in Pakistan had invited Unisame and its members for a meeting to make an outline of the plan.—APP