Pakistan, July 5 -- The Pakistani government has finalized a new industrial policy to rescue the declining manufacturing sector, which has been shrinking for years. The policy was approved during a high-level meeting of the Industrial Policy Committee, chaired by Special Assistant to the PM, Haroon Akhtar Khan, in Islamabad.

Officials in the meeting showed concern that industry's share in GDP has dropped to just 18%, down from 26% in 1996. They stressed that urgent reforms are needed to boost exports, reduce import dependence, and stabilize the national economy.

The committee approved suggestions from eight subcommittees, which proposed major reforms. These included reviving sick industries, issuing loan restructuring guidelines, and ch...