Islamabad, Nov 7 (PTI) Pakistan on Saturday announced a new automobile policy focusing on affordable and electric vehicles, with measures to reduce manufacturing costs, boost exports and promote local production.
The policy's key features were outlined by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Industries and Production Haroon Akhtar Khan at a news conference with Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, state-run Radio Pakistan reported.
Khan said the policy rests on six pillars, including affordable vehicles for the middle and lower-middle classes, export promotion, electric vehicles, localisation, vehicle safety and transparency.
He said import duties had been reduced to lower manufacturing costs, which would help make locally manufactured vehicles more affordable, particularly for low-income consumers.
“You will see that prices of cars will come down … the manufacturing cost of automakers will come down…The prices of all vehicles, except luxury vehicles, will come down,” he said.
Khan said lowering prices of vehicles below 1,300 cc was a special focus of the prime minister, adding that measures had been taken to increase localisation and automobile exports.
He said a target of USD 6 billion in automobile exports had been set for the next five years.
Tarar said the new policy would promote local vehicle manufacturing and exports, while ensuring affordable, quality and environment-friendly vehicles.
He said girls and women were increasingly using electric scooters to travel to schools, colleges and offices, while the use of electric motorcycles and scooters was growing rapidly.
Tarar said the adoption of electric vehicles would also help reduce Pakistan's oil import bill, the burden of which ultimately fell on the poor.
Describing the policy as a comprehensive initiative, he said it offered special incentives for electric vehicles while emphasising the importance of promoting local manufacturing.
Tarar said the local automobile industry could not fully benefit unless vehicles were manufactured for export and employment opportunities created.
(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)