Trade policy lacks women-specific incentivesÂ’ | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

Trade policy lacks women-specific incentivesÂ’

KARACHI: Founder President of Association of Women Entrepreneurs and Career Women of Pakistan (AWECWOP), Farzana Bashir, has said that the trade policy for 2008-09 focused more on imports rather than exports and it lacks women-specific incentives, especially promotion of women-owned SMEs and cottage industries.

In a press statement, she added that emphasis is more on facilitating structural initiatives that never get implemented. Bashir further said that there is a need to provide special incentives to enterprises that employ at least 30 per cent women.

She stated that a majority of units in the textile value-added sector have a large number of women employees and that even pharmaceutical industries employ women in substantial numbers. She voiced that the textile value-added sector must be encouraged and its contribution to the economy accepted.

Bashir, moreover, said that special allocation must be made for vocational training and skills development of women workers so that women could also perform in other sectors. She said that TDAP must endeavor to organise and sponsor single-country women entrepreneur’s exhibitions in foreign countries so that these women get international exposure and experience.

She lamented the fact that no specific consideration has been envisaged for the export of services undertaken by career-oriented women in the fields of information technology, engineering, horticulture, education, and health services. She said that there is an abundance of talent among women professionals in Pakistan and this should be encouraged and promoted.
Source: The News
Date:7/23/2008