PM Shehbaz Approves Trade Facilitation Board to Boost Cross-Border Trade

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will personally head a newly established Trade Facilitation Board designed to streamline cross-border trade, tackle non-tariff barriers, and build a roadmap for trade promotion, according to an official statement released on Thursday by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

The premier greenlit the initiative during a meeting in Islamabad focused on trade facilitation. Federal ministers and senior officials attended the briefing, including Food Security Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain, Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan, Economic Affairs Minister Ahad Khan Cheema, and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb.

Maritime Minister Junaid Anwar Chaudhry, Prime Minister’s Adviser on Industry Haroon Akhtar, and Minister of State for Finance and Railways Bilal Azhar Kayani also participated in the discussions alongside other relevant senior government officials.

Board Mandate and Supply Chain Strategy

According to the PMO statement, the newly formed board will make decisions regarding non-tariff matters related to cross-border trade. Beyond removing trade friction, the body will formulate strategies tied to the Trade Facilitation Index and monitoring.

All decisions on cross-border non-tariff issues and supply chain enhancements will fall under the purview of the incoming board. The PMO indicated that this body will also formulate a trade promotion roadmap alongside strategies for the Trade Facilitation Index and monitoring.

Emergency Port Capacity Upgrades and Working Groups

To support the board’s policy choices, Prime Minister Shehbaz instructed that efforts be executed urgently to boost the throughput capability of the nation’s ports. The government plans to establish specialized working groups for this purpose. The PMO pointed out that these teams will target better port performance, closer inter-departmental coordination, strict regulatory adherence, expedited pre-arrival clearance, and the integration of small and medium enterprises into global trade. The premier called for specific actions to assist importers and exporters at port facilities, such as simplifying cargo clearance procedures. Meeting participants were informed that port usage has shown significant improvement since port charges were reduced under the ongoing reforms.