October 14, 2021: The Advisor to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment, Mr. Abdul Razak Dawood, was briefed on product and geographical export diversification here that the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) on Wednesday.
During the briefing, he was informed that diversification of exports is an important pillar of Pakistan’s export strategy and the MOC has launched a number of initiatives aimed at product and market diversification of exports including Look Africa Policy, Reconnect Silk Route policy for Central Asian Republics (CARs), Drawback of Local Taxes and Levies (DLTL), rationalization of tariff on key imports for non-traditional products, Second phase of China Pakistan FTA & other Market Access Initiatives, EU-GSP Plus scheme, Competitive Energy Prices, Early Opening During COVID-19, STPF Policy Initiatives, E-Commerce Initiatives, etc.
He was informed that the MOC is focusing both on diversification within the Traditional product sectors like technical textiles and other specialized product sectors where currently there is little or no export but we have immense export potential exists. He was also informed that in addition to the above the MOC is also focusing on diversification into Non-Traditional product sectors.
He was informed that the MOC has conducted in-depth analysis on the degree of export diversification between the average exports between 2015 and 2018 which was then compared with 2020-21. The analysis showed that for the Traditional Markets, the export of traditional products increased by 7% with net increase of USD 1,028 million. In the same markets, the export of non-traditional products increased by 60%, a net increase of USD 2,022 million in value.
He was informed that for the Non-Traditional Markets, the export of traditional products decreased by 1% or USD 33 million. In contrast, the export of non-traditional products increased by 77% with an increase of USD 713 million.
The Advisor appreciated the good work done by the MOC in conducting the analysis. “Product export diversification has to be coupled with geographical diversification to new markets like Africa and South America,” said Mr. Dawood. He said that the policy has just begun to show results but there is still a long way to go in this regard.
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