GSP Plus Status: EU Mission Reviews Punjab's Steps

The European Union's monitoring mission, which is in Pakistan currently to assess the country's eligibility for Generalised System of Preference (GSP) plus extension, reviewed the steps taken by the Punjab government in nine priority area including human rights, child labour, labour rights and environment protection, here on Friday

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 24th Jun, 2022 ) :The European Union's monitoring mission, which is in Pakistan currently to assess the country's eligibility for Generalised System of Preference (GSP) plus extension, reviewed the steps taken by the Punjab government in nine priority area including human rights, child labour, labour rights and environment protection, here on Friday.

During a meeting at the Civil Secretariat, Chief Secretary Punjab Kamran Ali Afzal briefed the mission about the initiatives taken by the provincial government in the priority areas. He said Pakistan attaches great importance to its partnership with the European Union. He said that the GSP Plus status is very beneficial for the economy of Pakistan and after getting the status in 2014, Pakistani products got easy access to European markets.

The chief secretary told the mission that the Federal and provincial governments were ensuring the enforcement of relevant laws for implementation of international conventions, and reforms are underway in the areas of human rights, labour rights, environment and others. He said that a modern system had been devised for labour inspections with the help of information technology.

He said that concrete steps were being taken to eradicate child labour, and a survey had been completed in Punjab in that regard.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Punjab Rao Sardar Ali Khan said on the occasion that there was a zero tolerance policy regarding torture of accused in police custody. He said that help was sought from the Punjab Forensic Science Agency for investigation of cases on scientific lines.

The chief secretary also apprised the mission of the special initiatives, being taken for human and minorities' right, empowerment of women, and social welfare.

The efforts of the Punjab government in implementing the international conventions were lauded by the visiting mission comprising officials from the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the European Commission's Directorate-General for Trade and for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion.

The additional chief secretary (home), administrative secretaries of relevant departments including human rights, labour, and environment also attended the meeting.