A visionary leader creates a unifying vision and turns the vision into reality which is considered a fundamental skill of a leader. The leaders bring all the people, who are working under their supervision, together with a common goal and also provides a focal point for developing strategies to achieve a better future. Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan has become an example of a visionary leader who is leading the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) with fervour and vision. Becoming President of ICCI, on 1st October 2020, was a huge success for the young Entrepreneur and CEO of Centaurus Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan but he has emerged as a visionary President of ICCI within few months.
The ICCI, established in1984, aims to promote trade, industry, and services sector through local and foreign trade investment, income tax & sales tax customs, banking & finance, energy efficiency and conservation, environment, tourism promotion, youth, and women economic empowerment, etc. Many presidents have served ICCI in the history of ICCI and contributed significantly to achieve the stated goals of the organization. Sardar Yasir Khan is not only carrying on the legacy of the former presidents but also leading the organization with a broader vision.
Sardar Yasir Khan took the charge as President of ICCI on 1st October 2020 for 2020-21 and the taking over ceremony held at ICCI. Soon after assuming the presidency, he did not wait for another event/ceremony/program to explain his vision. While speaking, after the taking over ceremony, he said that Pakistan has great potential to enhance agriculture productivity and the government should focus on constructing more small and medium dams for water storage to boost the agriculture sector. He also suggested that the tourism sector has a lot of potentials to grow and the government should reduce duties on this sector and make conducive policies for attracting private sector investment in tourism infrastructure development.
Moreover, Mr Khan stated that the business community was the backbone of the economy and he would work for the protection of respect and honour of businessmen. In the end, he said he would work on the slogan of “making Pakistan great again” and would take all possible initiatives to make progress towards that direction. He further asked the members to keep sending him their input and proposals to address problems and bring further improvement in the working of the Chamber.
Since October 2020, Mr Khan has been proactively working to achieve his visionary objectives. Also, he has become a leading voice for the resolution of issues that are related to trade and foreign direct investment. Moreover, he is making utmost efforts to serve the cause of the business community by raising their voice across all the concerned corridors. For example, the promulgation of a balanced rent control act in Islamabad was a longstanding demand of traders. The National Assembly of Pakistan passed Rent Restrictions (Amendment) Bill 2020 on 20th October 2020 to address the very longstanding burning issue of the traders of the federal capital and Mr Khan played a significant role in this regard.
Furthermore, he has been consistently pushing the government of Pakistan to formulate conducive policies for the promotion of FDI in Pakistan. For the promotion of trade, Mr Khan is actively engaging with foreign diplomats and the business community. Recently, on 11th February 2021, the Jordanian envoy along with Dr Maen Khareasat, minister plenipotentiary at the Jordan embassy, visited the ICCI and met ICCI president Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan and his team. While speaking to Arab News, Mr Khan has told that ICCI has proposed to Jordan to start joint productions as labour was cheaper in Pakistan than Jordan and Jordanian companies could benefit from installing their manufacturing plants in Pakistan.
Mr Sardar Khan Ilyas Khan has proved himself to be a visionary leader in a very short time as under his leadership ICCI is playing an effective role in the protection and promotion of rights of trade, industry, and services sector. His passion and work for Pakistan is a great example and an inspiration for the people who want to uplift the economy of Pakistan and work for the better future of the people of Pakistan.