ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has instructed officials to speed up the process of container clearance and ensure attractive trade tariffs at Pakistani ports, his office said on Monday, as the South Asian country undertakes maritime reforms to boost its economy.
Pakistan, which averted a default in 2023, is currently navigating an economic recovery path under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) program and has undertaken several reforms in various sectors.
A taskforce is working on sustainable reforms in the maritime sector to end the long-standing stagnation in Pakistan’s maritime economy, according to the prime minister.
“Pakistan has been bestowed with a long coastline, sea and other unlimited resources,” Sharif was quoted as saying at a meeting of the maritime taskforce he presided over in Islamabad.
“A plan should be made to minimize the duration of the presence of containers at the ports,” he said, asking authorities to auction containers available at the ports as soon as possible to better utilize the port space.
During the meeting, officials informed the prime minister that a National Dredging Plan (NDP) has been formulated keeping in mind the country’s needs for the next ten years. It will help set up a National Dredging Company for dredging of all the ports, according to Sharif’s office.
A plan of action has also been prepared for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) through public-private partnership for the next 25 years. Similarly, a plant is being established in Gadani, Balochistan to dispose of chemical waste and other hazardous materials, while the Pakistan Maritime Port Act is in the final stages, which will implement uniform rules and regulations at all ports.
On the occasion, Sharif said the development of economy is linked to marine resources and access to them.
“The pace of installing the latest scanners at all ports should be accelerated,” he said. “Trade tariffs should be reviewed to bring the country’s ports to a competitive standard.”
PM directs speedy container clearance, attractive tariffs at Pakistan ports as part of maritime reforms
https://arab.news/pq596
PM directs speedy container clearance, attractive tariffs at Pakistan ports as part of maritime reforms
- Pakistan has formed a maritime taskforce to streamline its blue economy by optimizing operations at various ports
- Shehbaz Sharif asks officials to accelerate pace of installation of scanners to reduce time for container clearance
Pakistan arrests suspect arriving from Cambodia amid crackdown on human smuggling
- Suspect worked at an “online fraud company” in Cambodia, later started smuggling people from Pakistan, says FIA
- Pakistan has intensified crackdown against human smugglers after hundreds of migrants drowned near Pylos in 2023
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Sunday said it had arrested a key suspect involved in smuggling humans who had arrived from Cambodia, alleging he was also part of an international fraud network.
The suspect, identified as Zainullah, was arrested by FIA officials when he arrived in the southern port city of Karachi from Cambodia.
Zainullah had traveled from Pakistan to Cambodia in September 2024, a press release issued by the agency said.
“He worked at an online fraud company in Cambodia and later became involved as an agent in recruiting individuals from Pakistan,” the FIA said.
The FIA said it recovered images of multiple individuals’ passports, payment receipts and bank transaction records after extracting data from Zainullah’s phone.
It said the suspect received money through personal bank accounts and a cryptocurrency account.
“The suspect has been handed over to the FIA Anti-Human Trafficking Circle, Karachi, for further legal proceedings,” the FIA said.
“Further investigation is underway.”
Pakistan intensified action against illegal migration in 2023 after hundreds of migrants, including 262 Pakistanis, drowned when an overcrowded vessel sank off the Greek town of Pylos, one of the deadliest boat disasters in the Mediterranean.
Authorities say they continue to target networks sending citizens abroad through dangerous routes, following heightened scrutiny at airports and a series of arrests involving forged documents.
Pakistan’s interior ministry said this week illegal migration to Europe has declined by 47 percent this year after its nationwide crackdown, saying that more than 1,700 human smugglers have been arrested in 2025.
