LAHORE, Oct 8: The federal government has been working with provincial administrations for the establishment of Special Economic Zones throughout the country to effectively and efficiently meet global competitiveness.

The Special Economic Zones (SEZ) Act 2012 has been promulgated to ensure that the incentives granted under it could not be withdrawn, said Board of Investment Secretary Anjum Bashir at the promotion meeting of Nanchuan Industrial Park at a local hotel on Monday.

“The law provides for exemption from customs duties and taxes for all capital goods, imported for the development, operation and maintenance of SEZs and enterprises there and the income accruable from development operations of the SEZs and their projects is also exempted from income tax for 10 years.

“Investors from Korea and Japan have shown interest in establishing SEZs in Pakistan. I invite Chinese investors and the management of Nanchuan Industrial Park to invest in our SEZs as Pakistan is a land of opportunities with high rate of returns. Besides our investment policy ensures full repatriation of profits, dividends and royalty,” said the BOI secretary.

Pakistan, due to its strategic location in the region, could serve as China’s main bridge for the mid-eastern markets. “The trade volume between Pakistan and China was $5,704 million in 2012 and there exists a huge potential and I am confident that it will go up to $10 billion in the next two to three years,” said Mr Bashir.

Earlier, Nanchuan Industrial Park Administration Committee Director-General Huang Guojun gave an overview of the Nanchuan Industrial Park of Xining (state-level) Economic and Development Zone, situated in Qinghai province of China.

Pakistan’s Honorary Investment Counsellor to China Akhtar Nazir said that the Pakistan Carpet Manufacturers and Exporters Association would be signing a memorandum of understanding with their Chinese counterparts for promotion of Pakistani hand knotted carpets in China that would support research and technology in the sector.