ISLAMABAD, Nov 17 (APP): The Senate Standing Committee on Commerce here on Thursday called for simplifying the procedures of public procurement to expedite procurement of commodities from the international markets, when their prices are at lower level to benefit the country.
The Committee which met with Senator Zeeshan Khanzada in the chair, discussed the working mechanisms of Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) and Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) and recommended measures for enhancing the efficiencies of these entities for the economic development of the country.
The Committee noted that due to cumbersome process of approval from the concerned authorities during their procurement to fulfill local needs, the prices of commodities like wheat, sugarcane and fertilizers gradually increased in international markets, which ultimately cost the country.
Meanwhile, Chairman TCP apprised the meeting about the operational activities of the TCP and said that the Corporation was established in 1967 and was fully government owned, adding that it was generating its own revenues, while it has 07 members and 02 independent members.
Meanwhile, he said that the paid up capital of the Corporation stood at Rs1 billion, whereas the comprehensive income after tax was recorded at Rs1.517 billion, adding that during the year 2021-22, the Corporation earned about Rs 4.469 billion and profit after tax was registered at Rs 2.565 billion.
He apprised the Committee that total liabilities of the Corporation swelled to Rs127.447 billion, adding that principal amount was calculated at Rs 45.721 billion and markup stood at Rs 87.726 billion by month of October 30, 2022.
The Committee expressed its concern over the increasing liabilities and asked for evolving mechanism to improve financial health of the Corporation and asked the TCP to approach Ministry of Finance to recover the outstanding amount of the provinces and other departments.
The Trade Councilor, Embassy of Pakistan in Canada briefed the Committee about the trade potential with Canada and measures being taken to exploit the untapped areas to further enhance bilateral trade and investment.
He informed the meeting that webinars were organized to highlight the trade and investment potential of Pakistan.
He informed that due to different tariff barriers, Pak-Canada trade was less then other regional countries and said that the Embassy was making efforts to remove these barriers to enhance bilateral trade.
Among others the meeting was attended by Senators Saleem Mandviwalla, Nuzhat Sadiq, Fida Muhammad Khan and Muhammad Abdul Qadir. The Secretary Commerce, Chairman TCP and senior officials of Ministry of Commerce and allied departments also attended the meeting.
