ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to intensify its engagement with the business community, emphasizing the need to address their concerns as a priority.

According to Radio Pakistan, during a review meeting on FBR reforms held in Islamabad, the Prime Minister instructed senior FBR officials to regularly visit Karachi at the beginning of each month. This initiative aims to foster direct interaction with business stakeholders and ensure prompt resolution of their issues. Highlighting the business community’s role as a crucial element of the national economy, Sharif underscored the importance of facilitating businesses to boost production and export activities.

The Prime Minister expressed optimism about Pakistan’s economic trajectory, projecting stability and growth in the current year. He noted that the government plans to officially acknowledge and encourage companies that adhere to tax regulations, aiming to improve the ease of doing business, promote investment, and enhance exports. The government’s broader objective includes simplifying the tax system to build confidence among business entities.

The meeting was briefed on the recent implementation of production monitoring systems across several industries, including sugar, cement, tobacco, tiles, and fertilizers. The textile and beverages sectors are also set to adopt similar systems. The briefing highlighted that these measures have significantly increased tax revenues, with the sugar industry alone contributing an additional 42 billion rupees in the past year. The cement and beverages industries reported additional tax collections of 38 billion and 15 billion rupees, respectively, through enhanced production monitoring.