News: CSF plans studies on global competitiveness
Name of the Newspaper: Daily Times
Date of publication: Tuesday, Aug 24, 2006

ISLAMABAD: The Competitiveness Support Fund (CSF), a joint venture of the Government of Pakistan, Ministry of Finance and the US Agency for International Development (USAID), plans to conduct a number of studies on the global competitiveness of selected economic sectors.
The studies will examine where competitiveness already exists withintargeted sectors and where it can be improved.

CSF will use the studies to forward recommendations to the government onpolicy interventions it should take to make certain sectors more internationally competitive.

The first sector selected by CSF is the growing motorcycle industry inPakistan. Other analysis will follow on the automotive and food processing sectors.

Motorcycle Industry estimates show that last year a total of over 700,000 motorcycles were produced in the country. The industry has been experiencing a healthy growth rate of around 30 per cent per year for the past 4-5 years.

It is estimated that production will cross the million units mark by 2008.

To identify the prospects and problems/obstacles of the motorcycle industry, a high-level delegation from CSF recently visited Karachi and met the key stakeholders.

A follow-up visit is scheduled for the first week of September to Lahore for an interaction with the stakeholders there as well.

Presently there are 43 motorcycle assemblers in the country that have been licensed by the Engineering Development Board (EDB).

Out of these, are 3 Japanese assemblers (Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki), the remaining 40 assemble Chinese motorcycles.

These assemblers buy parts, sub-assemblies and assemblies from over 200 large, medium and small vendors located in Karachi and Lahore. It is estimated that motorcycle industry employs more then 200,000 people directly and indirectly, said a press release on Wednesday.

The primary objective of this study is to carry out a policy analysis of the competitive advantage of the local motorcycle industry, along with identification of the problems being faced by the sector.

By obtaining better value and better prices for quality products, and by improving cooperation throughout the Pakistanis economy, the CSF will contribute to poverty alleviation by providing more income for producers and better employment prospects for employees.