HYDERABAD: President of Pakistan Dr Arif Alvi has said that price hike has become a global issue and prices of essential commodities increase with rise in prices of fuel and appreciation of dollar’s rate against rupee.

He said at a gathering of businessmen and industrialists in Kotri after a luncheon hosted in his honour by Jamshoro Chamber of Commerce on Thursday that governments always faced fiscal issues.

He urged investors, industrialists and businessmen to take interest in the use of information technology and create liaison with their counterparts in the developed world.

He said that everyone would have to pay attention to IT which had created opportunities for employment. IT was an expanding industry all over the world and Pakistan had also witnessed a substantial increase in IT-related income, he said.

‘18th Amendment not meant for creating hurdles to peoples’ movement by blocking roads’

He expressed hope that it would further progress and urged industrialists to invest heavily in IT sector to help create employment for youth. The government would also extend cooperation in this regard, he said.

He said the government would have to focus on the promotion of small and medium enterprises and in this regard it had introduced loan schemes for the industry. China was an example and a success story in establishing a network of medium and small enterprises, he said.

“We should take care of the poor and the underprivileged and encourage women by making them feel empowered in different spheres of life. This will lead to development of the country,” he said.

Doors of Governor House were always open for business community and they could contact the governor any time in connection with their issues, he said.

He said that dollar’s rate against rupee was consistently showing appreciation. That was why prices of essential commodities had increased, he said.

The president said that governments always faced issues of fiscal space. Industrialists and investors should provide facilities to labourers and wages law should be implemented and respected.

Sindh Governor Imran Ismail said the government had to go to IMF under compulsion and agree to its conditions in order to extricate Pakistan out of crisis. The government was supporting the downtrodden section of society to enable them to play their role in the development of the country, he said.

He said the present government was supporting industrialists and striving to offer them incentives. Steps were taken to lessen burden of taxation in budget, he said, adding that work on the Sukkur-Hyderabad motorway would begin soon.

He announced donating a fire brigade to Jamshoro chamber and said members of the chamber would be inducted in Pakistan Commerce Board as members.

MIRPURKHAS: President Alvi said while speaking to delegations of lawyers, traders, industrialists, party workers and local journalists at Qureshi hall after arriving here that 18th Amendment was not meant for creating hurdles to peoples’ movement by blocking roads. Provinces should make the federation strong instead of impeding its work, he said.

He said that Prime Minister Imran Khan would not build Kalabagh Dam without creating consensus among all provinces. Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf was struggling for economic progress, inexpensive treatment to people, quality education and better economic policies to raise standard of peoples’ lives, he said.

He said that mafias were entrenched in sugar and other sectors and “we will continue to fight against them”. The 18th Amendment was passed to devolve powers to grassroots level, not to block pathways of people and weaken the federation, he said.

He said the government had allocated Rs100 billion for the welfare of youth and also allocated handsome amount for women.

Governor Imran Ismail said that PTI would rule Sindh after next general election. His party had lessened grievances of masses by introducing Ehsaas programme.

The party’s district president Aftab Qureshi demanded the federal government construct a dental college, high court bench and an engineering college in Mirpurkhas.

Earlier, the president was welcomed on his arrival by adviser to prime minister on Sindh affairs Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim, Sindh governor and Leader of the Opposition in Sindh Assembly Haleem Adil Sheikh and other party leaders and government officers.

Published in Dawn, November 12th, 2021