KARACHI: Ambassa­dor of the European Union Raina Kionka has said that the GSP+ status for Pakistan has been rolled over without any changes to the rules of framework so everything was going to stay the same up to 2027.

“We also have elections in June 2024, which means there will be a political changeover in the parliament and the EU’s Commission. Once everything settles, we expect that the new parliament and the Council of EU member states will once again take up negotiations on a new directive for GSP+ with Pakistan which couldn’t happen last year,” she said while addr­essing the members of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) on Tuesday.

Although it’s a four-year rollover for GSP+, if they come up with a new regulation, it will become effective before 2027, she added.

According to KCCI’s press release, the EU ambassador said that rather than staying confined to exporting textiles only, the business community of Karachi should broaden and diversify their exports to the EU to take maximum advantage of GSP+.

“GSP+ is tremendously important for Pakistan’s economy whose overwhelming beneficiaries are not just textile producers but also workers in textile factories,” she said, adding that GSP+ has been extremely positive and useful in economic terms during the last 10 years as it helped in increasing Pakistan’s exports to EU by 108pc while EU imports also ascended by 40pc since the start of this scheme.

While identifying gems and jewellery, tourism, handcrafts and auto parts as potential sectors under GSP+, she said that the EU’s delegation in Islamabad would also like to set up a platform to promote EU-Pakistan business-to-business relations which could also help the SMEs in making good connections with businesses in EU and ultimately help the SMEs in Pakistan to also benefit from GSP+.

Earlier, KCCI President Iftikhar Ahmed Sheikh said that the EU has been the largest export destination for Pakistan, which stood at $8.4 billion, followed by the US at $5.93bn and China at $2.02bn in FY23.

Pakistan’s exports to the EU are dominated by the textiles sector and last year, Pakistan’s total textile exports remained at $16.50bn which is almost 60pc of the total exports.

He said Pakistan and the EU need to discuss ways to improve Pakistani products’ access to the EU market, address trade barriers, foster collaboration, focus on export diversification, and ensure smoother trade practices and compliance with international standards.

Published in Dawn, January 10th, 2024