LAHORE - Federal Minister for Science & Technology Mir Changez Khan Jamali has said that work on Pakistan Halal Product Development Board (PHPDB) would be expedited and all bureaucratic hurdles will be removed.
The Federal Minister was talking to LCCI President Irfan Qaiser Sheikh here at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Monday.
The Federal Minister said that there were some technical issues that delayed the issuance a notification regarding the establishment of PHPDB but he has directed the Additional Secretary Minister of Science of Technology to sit down with the LCCI and sort out all the issues coming in the way of establishment of PHPDB.
The Federal Minister said that the allocation for science and technology sector will be increased in the coming budget while it would one per cent of the GDP in 2015 and by the year 2020 it would be raised to 2 to 3 percent of the GDP to help the country join the club of technologically advanced nations.
Mir Chengez Khan Jamali regretted that the low allocations for the vital sectors like science and technology had kept the country dependent on developed world despite the fact that country has no dearth of resources.
The Minister said that innovation is a key to economic competitiveness and research institutions and researchers would have to come forward to address the gaps in the current scenario by developing world-class technologies.
The Federal Minister said that Science and Technology exhibitions provide a marketplace to showcase S&T Technological innovations, products, projects, services and solutions in different industrial sectors.