Pakistan is standing at a critical economic crossroads. The debate is no longer whether we need growth, but how we will achieve it. For decades, we have depended on loans, aid and expensive sea-based trade. The direction has now finally been set right: Pakistan must grow through exports. The government has understood that a country does not run on borrowed dollars, it runs on earned dollars. This is a welcome and long-awaited change in thinking, but the direction alone is not enough. What we need now is speed, facilitation, and a complete removal of barriers that are holding back our export potential.
Pakistan has been blessed by geography like few other countries in the world. To our east is China, the world’s second-largest economy. To our west is Iran, a market of 90 million people. To our northwest is Afghanistan, our natural gateway to Central Asia. And beyond that are Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan — a region of over 80 million people hungry for food, textiles, and access to the sea. Yet despite sitting in the middle of this huge economic circle, Pakistan has failed to become a trade hub. More than 90% of our trade is still done through the sea route, which is expensive, slow, and controlled by international shipping lines. Land trade, which is cheaper, faster, and creates jobs in our own border areas, remains neglected.
The solution is clear and has three parts. First, for China and Central Asia, we must make CPEC more than just a road. It must become a real trade highway. The Khunjerab Pass should be kept open throughout the year, a modern dry port must be built in Gilgit, and the Karakoram Highway must be upgraded for heavy, two-way traffic. This is our link to China’s Muslim provinces where demand for halal food is growing rapidly.
Second, we must remove all obstacles in the way of trade with Iran. Modern customs terminals should be built at Taftan and Mand. The Quetta-Zahedan railway line, which is currently outdated and slow, must be upgraded to international standards. Iran is an excellent market for Pakistani halal meat, rice, kinnow, mango and textiles. Joint trade initiatives like a Made-in-Pakistan Expo in Tehran and Mashhad can create immediate demand.
Third, and most importantly, we must unlock Central Asia. These landlocked countries need Pakistan for access to the Arabian Sea, and we need their markets and energy. The much-discussed Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan railway from Termez to Gwadar via Kandahar can be a real game-changer. If this link is completed, Gwadar will not just be a Pakistani port, it will be Central Asia’s port. This will bring us billions in transit fees and make Pakistan a true regional transit hub.
But roads and railways alone do not create trade. Agreements do. We need detailed, product-specific trade agreements with Iran, China, Russia and Central Asian states. What will be the tariff on meat? What will be the duty on textiles? What documents are required? These things must be clear, simple, and available at a single window. A trader should not have to run from one department to another. One-window clearance for customs, quarantine, halal certification and banking must be ensured at all border points.
In all of this, one sector can become Pakistan’s dollar-earning engine: Halal Meat and Halal Food. The global halal food market is now worth more than $5 trillion. Pakistan has everything needed to lead this market. We have some of the best livestock breeds in the world in Cholistan, Thar and across Punjab and Sindh. We have hardworking farmers and vast grazing lands. Demand for Pakistani halal meat is exploding in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, China and Bangladesh. Yet we are exporting only a fraction of our potential.
Last year, Pakistan’s meat exports grew by only 5.4%. If we get full facilitation, we can easily take our halal meat exports to $1.1 billion and then beyond. Our competitors are not sitting idle. India and major African meat-exporting countries are already present in these markets, signing long-term supply contracts and capturing market share.
To compete, the government must do two things on priority. One, it must negotiate preferential or duty-free access for Pakistani meat in Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, Türkiye, Bangladesh, Gulf markets, Iran and other Central Asian countries. Two, it must reduce the unnecessary cost of halal certification and regulatory compliance. For example, the cost of SFDA compliance for Saudi Arabia is so high that small and medium exporters cannot afford it. We must rationalize these costs while fully maintaining all required food safety and halal standards. Our exports must be commercially competitive through better market access, efficient logistics, competitive certification costs and reliable delivery.
The government has taken a positive step by providing Export Finance Scheme (EFS) at 5.4% when the policy rate is 11%, but this gap must be further bridged. The State Bank must bring the policy rate to single digits so that investment in new slaughterhouses, cold chains and logistics becomes affordable for the private sector.
Pakistan has the geography, the livestock resources, the human capital and the regional connectivity to become a major trade and transit hub. What is needed now is a policy that removes barriers instead of adding them. Ease in border trade, faster customs clearance, competitive tariffs, simplified halal certification, stronger regional agreements and improved logistics can turn our geographical location into an economic advantage.
Pakistan must compete for markets — not watch competitors take them. The path to economic survival is not only through increasing production; it is also through making it easier, faster and more competitive to sell Pakistani products to the world.