Govt working on IMF's demand.

Byline: Imran Ali Kundi

ISLAMABAD -- The government is working on International Monetary Fund's demand to ensure the system to electronically monitor the production and supply of cigarettes.

Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Shabbar Zaidi has summoned a meeting of all tobacco manufacturers on September 12 2019 in order to have their views for installation of Track and Trace system for tobacco products.

The IMF had asked the government to ensure that the system to electronically monitor the production and supply of cigarettes and other products of tobacco is completely operational by March 2020. The IMF had directed the relevant departments that to meet this deadline, the bidding process should be completed by September 2019 and successful bidding company should be issued the license to implement this Track and Trace System. The IMF had also asked the government to withdraw the legal provisions aimed at limiting the tax audit.

In structural benchmarks, the government had committed with the IMF that it would issue licenses for the track-and-trace system...