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LAHORE, Apr 30 (APP):Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Industries and Production (SAPM-I&P)) Haroon Akhtar, I&P Ministry’s Federal Secretary Saif Anjum, and Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) Chief Executive Officer Socrat Aman Rana in a joint statement issued here on Wednesday to mark the International Labor Day 2025, have assured to extend full support to enhance employments and skill development opportunities in the SME sector for labour force of Pakistan in line with the SME development vision of the Prime Minister to be implemented by the Ministry of Industries and Production through SMEDA.
The SAPM Haroon Akhtar Khan said, “On International Labor Day, we acknowledge the invaluable contributions of workers across Pakistan’s industrial and commercial sector,” and emphasized upon the importance of formalizing the informal economy to ensure workers’ rights and social protections.
He added that the Ministry of Industries and Production was working hard to protect workers rights while increasing job opportunities in the SME sector under PM vision.
Federal Secretary Saif Anjum informed that the Ministry of Industries and Production (MoIP) in partnership with the ILO had launched the Enterprise Formalization Project, which will also formalize the labour force to improve their employability and access to the new job markets by developing the skills required for a just transition in response to climate change.
SMEDA CEO Socrat Aman Rana said, “At SMEDA, we are committed to look after the complete value chain of SME sector, in which labor plays the pivotal role.” He mentioned that SMEDA development projects also include capacity building initiatives for labor force of the country to provide them with the necessary tools, training, and resources to compete in the job market.
Socrat said that over 84 percent of Pakistan’s workforce operates informally within the SME and home-based sectors, creating barriers for businesses and workers alike. This informality limits access to critical markets, financing, social protections and skill development, he said and hoped that the “Enterprise Formalization Project” launched by MoIP in collaboration with ILO will remove these anomalies.