Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Industries and Production, Haroon Akhtar Khan, held a meeting with Barneby Plowright, a leading gemstones exporter, in Islamabad on Friday to discuss the formulation of the upcoming National Gemstones Policy.
During the meeting, both sides discussed ways to strengthen Pakistan’s gemstone sector through policy reforms, formalisation, and international collaboration. The Special Assistant also visited Barneby’s gemstone setup in Islamabad, where he was briefed on the entire process of diamond polishing, grading, and packaging.
Haroon Akhtar Khan stated that, on the special directives of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the National Gemstones Policy is being formulated to facilitate exporters and manufacturers of gemstones. He emphasised that under the new policy, gemstones exporters will be given the status of an industry, which will help in documenting and regulating this largely informal sector — currently estimated to have around USD 2 billion in undocumented trade.
He added that the new policy aims to bring the gemstone industry into the formal economy, enabling Pakistan to earn billions of dollars in revenue. The policy will be developed within one month, taking into account international best practices and successful global models.
Highlighting Pakistan’s rich mineral wealth, Haroon Akhtar Khan noted that the country is blessed with some of the world’s finest quality gemstones. He appreciated Barnaby Plowright and his team for their technical expertise, innovation, and contribution to gemstone processing in Pakistan.
