ISLAMABAD, May 20: The Senate Standing Committee on Commerce on Tuesday called for serious efforts to cut the rising trade deficit and revive the industrial and manufacturing sector in the country.

The committee, which met here under the chairmanship of Senator Muhammad Amin Dadabhoy, expressed its deep concern over the trade deficit already touching $17 billion.

The committee recommended that the most rewarding means to reverse the tide would be to enhance exports.

It called for a pro-active role of organisations like Export Promotion Board (EPB) and Board of Investment (BOI) and directed that a meeting be convened of all the stakeholders for devising innovative strategies in this regard. Emphasis should be placed on innovation and value addition, it observed.

The Senate body also called for complete revival of the textile sector, which has a huge potential, but which is currently facing serious difficulties.

The senators did not agree with the notion that the main cause of growing trade deficit was unprecedented increase in oil prices adding that the country’s competitors are living in the same world and facing the same conditions. “We need to have a vision and a long-term policy with a sense of direction and clear cut focus, to tide over our difficulties,” it remarked.

Earlier, the ministry of commerce in its presentation to the committee said that machinery and raw material are about 69 per cent of the total imports. Petroleum group accounts for 25 per cent and food items about 10 per cent of the total imports.