PIDE Roundtable Calls for an Export-Oriented Approach to Pakistan’s Trade Agreements
Islamabad, November 13, 2026 The Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) hosted a roundtable titled “From Signing to Exporting: Exploring the Export-Promoting Role of Trade Agreements,” bringing together policymakers, trade experts, academics, and private-sector representatives. The discussion drew on PIDE’s forthcoming report, “Trade Agreements of Pakistan: A Critical Review of RTAs’ Export Performance,” authored by Dr. Amjad Masood and Ms. Aneela Zubair of PIDE’s Center for Trade, Logistics and Infrastructure (CTLI). Participants included representatives of the WTO, the Economic Advisory Group, the Pakistan Business Council, APTMA, the EXIM Bank of Pakistan, Pakistan Single Window, IBA, and SPRC, among others.
Dr. Uzma Zia, Senior Research Economist, PIDE, moderated the session.Dr. Amjad Masood, Chief of Research and Director, CTLI, presented the report’s key findings. Since 2000, imports from RTA partners have grown far faster than exports, so that each dollar of imports is now matched by only about 20 cents of exports. The report proposes an Export-Oriented RTA Framework built on export-focused negotiation, alignment with industrial policy, demand-based partner selection, SPS access alongside tariff cuts, deeper agreements, and a KPI-based performance review at the Ministry of Commerce. It also maps this framework against Pakistan’s existing agreements, identifying the provisions already in place, the main gaps, and the clauses and actions needed to close them.Opening the discussion, Dr. Manzoor Ahmad, former Ambassador of Pakistan to the WTO and the Chair of the WTO Trade Dispute Arbitration Panel, welcomed the study as timely. He noted that Pakistan’s latest agreement, with Türkiye, covers only about 2% of its trade, and that apart from the agreement with China, none of Pakistan’s RTAs has succeeded. He attributed this partly to high domestic protection, which led business interests to push for weaker agreements, and stressed that negotiation and implementation matter as much as the concessions exchanged.
Dr. Vaqar Ahmed, Member of the Economic Advisory Group and Team Lead, Oxford Policy Unit, argued that zero tariffs alone would not sustain long-term growth, whereas a higher frequency of trade would. He suggested treating FTA offers as a step towards unilateral liberalization even while negotiations continue, opening trade with all neighbours with a strong focus on connectivity, and bringing all provinces on board.Dr. Hassan Butt, Senior Advisor, CEEC, emphasized economic diplomacy and inter-ministerial coordination, noting that many MoUs signed through embassies are never implemented. Ms. Sarrah Javad of APTMA observed that the market access Pakistan secures often misses the tariff lines that matter to its exporters. Phase II of the China–Pakistan FTA added access on 313 tariff lines, but many of these are products Pakistan does not export at all. Mr. Javed Kureishi, CEO, Pakistan Business Council, called for clearly designated leads for review processes, backed by a proper follow-up protocol.Mr. Sarmad Pretu of the EXIM Bank of Pakistan identified collateral requirements as a key constraint on SMEs’ access to export finance and outlined how the Bank’s support for exporters has evolved.
Dr. Zafar Mahmood, Professor, NUST, argued that Pakistan’s problem is not too few trade agreements but a failure to translate preferential access into export competitiveness, and called for more active economic diplomacy. Dr. Adil Nakhoda, Chairperson of the EAG urged Pakistan to pursue deeper trade agreements and lower its MFN tariffs to integrate into global value chains.Participants appreciated PIDE’s effort to bring government, industry, and academia together for a timely discussion. The insights shared will inform the final version of the report.
