Public-private collaboration in focus at PBC meeting

April 14, 2025 (MLN): To enhance economic efficiency through public-private collaboration, and to discuss regulatory challenges and investment opportunities, Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Dr. Ahsan Iqbal, met with the senior leadership of the Pakistan Business Council (PBC).

Addressing the business community, Dr. Ahsan Iqbal underscored the urgency of improving policy implementation and reducing operational hurdles.

“Minor regulatory discrepancies like missing measurement units in SROs are causing costly shipment delays."

"We’re forming a coordinated working group with private sector stakeholders and think tanks to meet fortnightly and resolve such issues proactively,” he stated.

The meeting featured open dialogue from PBC members across various sectors:

Azam Faruque, Director PBC, noted the growing returns from deregulated crops: Maize is performing well due to minimal government intervention.

However, Pakistan’s high electricity costs remain a major impediment to global competitiveness, he added.

Muhammad Arif Habib, Director PBC, emphasized the untapped potential of public land assets and the blue economy: Public-private partnerships are key, as per the press release issued today.

Pakistan Railways owns vast unused land that can generate millions if commercially developed. Similarly, our blue economy has a potential of $6–8 billion, but poor communication is keeping real figures hidden from investors and the media, he noted.

Speaking on CPEC, he added: “Pakistan has never defaulted on any CPEC-related investment. Most of the financing is on favorable 20-year terms with grace periods. We haven’t been able to inform the public adequately about these facts.”

Danish Lakhani highlighted issues in the IT sector: “Registered IT companies pay taxes, while freelancers often don’t, creating an unfair playing field. Also, making large dollar-denominated payments remains a major challenge for startups.”

Expressing concern over bureaucratic hurdles, Ziad Bashir, Vice Chairman PBC, remarked: “We consistently hear a positive vision from the Minister, but when it comes to actual dealings with the bureaucracy, the experience is vastly different.”

In response, Dr. Ahsan Iqbal acknowledged the gap and shared the government’s strategy.

“This is exactly why we’re initiating civil service reforms to simplify processes and adopt a cluster-based system similar to the private sector, reducing unnecessary layers and speeding up decision-making,” he said.

The session ended with a strong commitment from both sides to foster continuous dialogue, build institutional trust, and work collectively towards economic modernization and efficiency.

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