Karachi: Putting a tax on businesses that research and develop hybrid seeds at the local level should be reconsidered by the government, a person in charge said.
LCCI Executive Committee member Momin Ali Malik said that the rising costs of energy and fuel are making export-oriented businesses less competitive. He is a senior executive at Guard Group and a member of the LCCI Executive Committee.
For sectors and enterprises, long-term planning has become impossible. “Agriculture is a significant source of raw materials for our export industries, particularly the cotton industry, which is under great strain owing to a scarcity of high-quality seeds,” he said.
Malik lamented that the government had slapped a sales tax on the purchase of high-quality seeds for various crops, despite the fact that imported hybrid rice and maize seeds had been a success storey.
He added that the government should expand commercial opportunities with Russia and facilitate the construction of financial channels, noting that Pakistan’s commerce with Russia is less than $1 billion.
Malik said that youthful leadership has joined the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), and UBG leaders Iftikhar Ali Malik and S M Munir have begun picking young business leaders who will soon join the FPCCI.
