Vol. 3 No. 2 (2020): Pakistan Journal of International Affairs
Articles

Export Oriented SMEs of Pakistan in Perspective of CPEC

Published 2021-03-28

Abstract

Pakistan export commodities marginally belong to agriculture sector. Most of the export commodities belong to the SME agriculture products which include rice, fruit, vegetables and cereals. However, Pakistan farmers, as well as landlords, stay at a long distance from main highways on which such products are further brought to the national markets and seaports (Karachi and Gwadar) for export purposes. Hence, food products are frequently conveyed in little amounts over terrible bumpy roads. It causes long transport journeys and high cost per unit of item transported and results in a significant decrease in profits. Pakistan agriculture SMEs exports further require market access particularly to UAE, Saudi Arabia, and China where food items are as of now surely understood and bring high cost. CPEC Master Plan, for the most part, focuses on SME agriculture segment for advancement and development. Through CPEC logistics investment, Pakistan can improve agriculture SMEs exports significantly by way of better transport and marketing facilities. For this purpose, current study discusses first Pakistan agriculture SMEs export potential, secondly the legal protections available for agriculture SMEs, thirdly the link between better transport infrastructure and improved Agri SME exports, fourthly CPEC improvement plan and finally concludes that CPEC projects can improve Pakistan’s agriculture SMEs exports sector which is very low income due to obsolete logistics cold chain,warehousing, marketing as well as transportation facilities.