ISLAMABAD: Pakistan would continue to benefit from the UK’s trade preferences scheme at par with the EU GSP Plus facility after the Brexit.
This was stated by Pakistan High Commissioner in the United Kingdom (UK) Moazzam Ahmad Khan Monday while delivering a key-note address at a webinar on “Post-Brexit UK’s GSP scheme and potential for Pak-UK trade”, jointly organised by the Pakistan High Commission, Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), and Ministry of Commerce. A large number of businessmen from the two countries attended the webinar.
The high commissioner highlighted the significance of UK’s market for Pakistan and said that the duty-free access on more than 90pc of the country’s exports was a good omen for future trade and investment relations between the two countries.
To make effective utilisation of the available concessions and increasing its market share post Brexit, Moazzam underlined the need for a comprehensive strategy and effective public-private cooperation.
The high commissioner apprised the participants of the webinar about the efforts undertaken to address regulatory and non-tariff barriers on Pakistani products and also shared an outreach plan to create awareness about the trade and investment potential.
He said that it was encouraging to see remarkable growth in Pakistan’s exports to the UK and increased remittances during the current fiscal year.
In order to sustain the current momentum, he urged local businesses to diversify export products, establish long term business contacts with the buyers, develop compliance mechanisms, and acquire certifications.
He said that given the potential of UK’s market, products like pharmaceutical, healthcare and PPE, surgical instruments, IT enabled services, processed food, and agricultural products possess immense potential and need to be exploited.
Further, TDAP Adviser Kamal Shahryar spoke about the issues related to compliance with international conventions and rules of origin while proposals for the expansion of UK-Pakistan trade and economic ties in the post Brexit period were also discussed.
