Shahid Imran urges the government to simplify export taxation, offer low-interest financing and address energy costs, warning that structural weaknesses are undermining Pakistan’s labour cost advantage.

LAHORE: Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) Regional Committee on Food Convener Shahid Imran has called for rationalising industrial energy tariffs to help Pakistani manufacturers compete with regional rivals and secure affordable electricity supplies.

Speaking to a delegation of industrialists from Haroonabad, led by Chaudhry Tahir Mahmood Arain, on Sunday, he urged the government to simplify the tax system for export-oriented industries and end unnecessary harassment of businesses.

He also called on the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and the government to introduce concessional financing facilities for labour-intensive industries.

Shahid Imran said Pakistan’s relatively low labour costs represented a significant competitive advantage, noting that labour was 34% cheaper than India, 41% cheaper than Vietnam and 62% cheaper than China.

However, he warned that this advantage could be lost without immediate structural reforms.

He identified three major challenges affecting industrial competitiveness: high energy costs, a complicated taxation system and elevated interest rates.

According to him, Pakistan’s affordable workforce alone cannot sustain export growth unless businesses also have access to reliable electricity, simpler tax procedures and affordable financing.

He cautioned that failure to implement timely reforms could turn the country’s demographic dividend into an economic challenge, stressing the need for policies that support industrial production, employment and export competitiveness.