ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan says provision of job opportunities to the youth and increase in exports are amongst the top priorities of the government.

He was chairing a meeting of National Coordination Committee for Small and Medium Enterprises in Islamabad on Thursday.

The Prime Minister said promotion of small and medium enterprises will play a vital role in achieving targets in these priority areas. He said SMEs had been ignored during the past 10 years, which negatively impacted the country's economy.

The Prime Minister said all the federal government departments and provincial governments should pay special attention on promotion of the SME sector in line with the government's priorities.

He said the government is committed to provide all possible facilities to the SMEs, including provision of credit, easy tax system and facilitation in business. The Prime Minster directed the Minister for Industries to finalize at the earliest roadmap based on timelines in consultation with provinces regarding implementation of the proposed SME policy.

The proposed National SME Policy 2020 was presented to the Prime Minister in the meeting. NNI