PM Imran forms NCC on SMEs sector

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has formed the National Coordination Committee on Small and Medium Enterprises Development for the growth of the SMEs sector across the country.

According to an official document released by the Prime Minister’s Office, the committee will develop a mechanism to ensure coherent and synchronized implementation of SMEs growth steps.

The secretarial support to the committee will be provided by the Ministry of Industries and Production. The prime minister ordered NCC to review and finalize the draft SME policy within two weeks.

The Minister for Industries and Production, as COVID-19, will brief the prime minister once a week on impediments, recommendations for improvement and overall progress on implementation of the PM’s policy guidelines.

Other members of the committee include secretaries of the Ministry of Industries, Commerce Division, Finance Division, Power Division, Petroleum Division, and Law and Justice Ministry, all chief secretaries, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) chairman, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan chairman.

 Chief executive officers of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA), and Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), State Bank of Pakistan deputy governor and one representative of the SMEs sector from each province will be part of NCC.

The committee chairman can opt to appoint any person from the public and private sectors if deemed necessary. The committee will focus on fiscal and monetary incentives for the SMEs growth and suggest measures to address market address.

It will suggest legislative and regulatory amendments to enhance the case of doing business for SMEs and encourage documentation for the sector.

The committee will suggest guidelines to reduce the regulatory burden on the SMEs and come up with deliverables and targets for implementation of approved measures besides assigning responsibilities with timelines.

It will hold regular weekly meetings to review progress and act as a focal point for inter-provincial, inter-ministerial, inter-departmental and inter-agency coordination for implementation.