E-commerce promotion essential for strengthening economy: President Alvi

ISLAMABAD : President Dr. Arif Alvi chaired a meeting on E-commerce to review the action plan with regard to implementation of E-commerce policy in the country.  The meeting was attended by Minister for IT & Telecom, Syed Amin ul Haque, Advisor to PM on Commerce, Abdul Razak Dawood, Deputy Governor, State Bank of Pakistan, Mr. Jamil Ahmed, Secretary to the President, Mr. Tariq Najeeb Najmi, Secretary IT & Telecom, Mr. Shoaib Ahmad Siddiqui, Additional Secretary Finance, Dr. Arshad Mahmood, Chairman FBR, Mr. Muhammad Javed Ghanni, Member (IT), M/o IT&Telecom, Syed Junaid Imam, CEO NITB, Syed Shabahat Ali and Joint Secretary, M/o Commerce, Ms. Aisha Humaira Moriani. While addressing the meeting, the President said that promotion of E-commerce was highly essential for strengthening economy of the country. He said that E-commerce offered huge opportunities for small and medium enterprises that connected them with Pakistani Online markets and international markets through global E-commerce platforms. Highlighting the importance of E-commerce, the President said that it provided access to distant markets, reduce cost of doing business and create employment opportunities. Ministry of Commerce briefed the meeting about the E-commerce initiatives and their role in economic development of the country. It informed that the country had potential to increase its GDP by US$36 billion and create 4 million jobs by 2025 by using digital financial services.  The participants were apprized that E-trade in the country had crossed over Rs. 100 billion. In order to promote E-commerce, the meeting underscored the need for tax incentive packages and availability of IT infrastructure and quality of services in the country. The President asked NITB, FBR, SBP, Ministries of IT and Commerce to expeditiously complete work on their respective pillars.