Pakistan has great potential to significantly enhance its exports through value-added products. Government should gear up its efforts to enhance non-traditional exports by requiring latest technology and machinery.

This was observed by Mahfooz Elahi, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry in a statement. He said over the years, the country has focused on expanding its manufacturing base to raise exports. Now, this is the time to focus on non-traditional export path for a rapid and sustainable economic development.

He said that Pakistan could earn much higher foreign exchange earnings by adding value to its textile and industrial products as the unit price realization for value-added products was far higher than that for low value-added products. 

ICCI President said that only UAE and other Muslim countries offer tremendous opportunities of increasing export of value added food products. But for making possible fast growth of exports and realizing the dream of import substation, Pakistan would have to introduce value-addition at all levels.
 
He said that our country cannot afford to miss its export growth targets this year or continue to delay import substitution because that would weaken its external sector and make it more dependent on external debt, which would prove harmful in the long term for the economy.

Mahfooz Elahi said that Pakistan’s exports of textiles remained mostly concentrated on low value-added products despite a rising share of higher value added textile products in global trade. Therefore, he called upon the government to support textile industry in moving up the value chain and increasing the share of high value added garments and made-ups in its export portfolio.

He said apart from textiles, there was a vast scope for value-addition in almost every industry including leather, plastic, food industries and those with export potential while value-addition in construction and engineering industry could earn huge amounts of foreign exchange.

But to realize all these benefits, he stressed that government should provide easy loaning facility to industries along with facilitating them in free import of required technology & machinery which would enable Pakistan to grab its due share of exports in international market. He said that by emphasizing on non-traditional export path, industries could not only give a hefty boost to their exports, they could also cater the growing domestic demand for sophisticated goods.