ISLAMABAD: The Working Group of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) in its maiden meeting on Wednesday discussed impediments to the development of special economic zones (SEZs) with the objective of fast-tracking industrialisation.

Privatisation Minister Fawad Hasan Fawad chaired the meeting which was attended by all relevant stakeholders in the provincial governments and their industrial zone authorities.

In a presentation, the Additional Secretary Board of Investment (BoI) and Director-General of Special Economic Zones highlighted the major impediments faced by existing ones and the framework requirements of future SEZs.

The BoI proposed the development of ‘One Stop Shop’ facilitation for future SEZs.

The meeting discussed the limitations of the concept of ‘One Stop Shop’ and pointed out the need for a mutual agreement between the federal and provincial governments for a development framework based on international best practices and standards, within that the need for a legal mandate in the constitutional scheme was also highlighted.

The issues of identification and allotment of land, cost competitiveness, provision of utilities, human resource constraints and consistency of policies were also discussed.

Published in Dawn, November 9th, 2023