Chamber profile
Working for Gujranwala’s businesses since 1978
Since 1978 the Gujranwala Chamber of Commerce & Industry has been the trade body of the city’s manufacturers, exporters and traders: it opens markets, represents members to government, and builds the institutions local industry relies on.
What GCCI does
Markets, representation, knowledge and service
GCCI is the only trade body representing Gujranwala’s business community, based at the divisional headquarters. Its responsibilities fall under four headings.
01
Opening markets
- Trade delegations to new markets
- Participation in international exhibitions and trade fairs
- Visa facilitation for members
- Attestation and recommendation letters
- The trade directory
02
Representing members
- Federal budget proposals
- Trade-policy proposals to the federal government
- Advocacy for Gujranwala’s export sector
- Dialogue with government and international agencies on business issues
- Meetings to resolve issues between business and government
- Nominations to boards and committees
03
Information and skills
- Current information on business, the economy and SME policy
- Research and data services
- Seminars, workshops and conferences
- Corporate training and capacity building for new entrepreneurs
- Quarterly publications
- Facilitation desks
04
Community and fair dealing
- Arbitration of business disputes
- Links between industry and academia
- Special arrangements for members with the corporate sector
- Social-sector work in health and education
History
From an association to a chamber
Before the Chamber, the Gujranwala Association of Trade and Industry (GATI) looked after the business interests of the city’s traders and industrialists. GCCI took on that role in 1978 and has worked since then for a better business environment, a stronger manufacturing base and more exports from Gujranwala.
1978
The Chamber is founded
Twelve founder members establish GCCI. It succeeds the Gujranwala Association of Trade and Industry (GATI), which had looked after the city’s traders and industrialists until then. Sh. Gulzar Ahmed is the first President and Muhammad Lateef Dar the first Secretary General.
2013
Export Processing Zone in operation
The Gujranwala Export Processing Zone, a fully developed 113-acre estate, begins operations.
2017
Gujranwala Business Centre
GBC is registered as a public-sector company with SMEDA, on land provided by the Chamber, to give local manufacturers a shared display and meeting space.
2026
A new term, 2026–28
Members elect the office bearers and Executive Committee for 2026–28; the result is notified on 5 October 2026.
Our focus
Six areas of focus
Where the Chamber puts its effort.
01
Global economic cooperation
Working with chambers and institutions abroad to share information and find common answers to the problems that cross borders.
02
Strengthening businesses
Connecting entrepreneurs with advisers who help them find the gaps in their systems, operations and strategy, and plan how to close them.
03
Global business network
Events and introductions for members who trade or travel abroad, so they build relationships and understand the markets they sell into.
04
Export promotion
Trade visits, fairs, training and representation abroad that help more Gujranwala firms start exporting and reach new markets.
05
Bilateral and multilateral trade
Specialised international business events, and advice to members on market access and the trade rules that apply to them.
06
Industry and academia
Closing the gap between the skills industry needs and the graduates universities produce, and bringing university research to the factory floor.
Achievements & projects
Institutions the Chamber helped build
Alongside export promotion, the Chamber has put its weight behind industrial, educational and social projects that still serve the city.
Industry
Gujranwala Business Centre (GBC)
A public-sector company registered in 2017 and run with SMEDA on land the Chamber provided. It gives manufacturers who cannot market on their own a shared display, meeting rooms for visiting buyers and delegations, and advice on presentation and new markets.
Gujranwala Tools, Dies and Moulds Centre (GTDMC)
A common facility centre set up by TUSDEC for design, machining, manufacturing, training and consultancy, serving the industrial clusters of Gujranwala, Gujrat, Sialkot, Daska and Wazirabad.
Ceramics Centre Gujranwala
Established by TUSDEC for Pakistan’s main sanitary-ware cluster: training, testing, consultancy and modern machinery, including computer-aided design and engineering.
Export Processing Zone (S.I.E. No. 3)
Established through an MoU between EPZA and the Punjab Small Industries Corporation on 113 fully developed acres; operations began in 2013.
Small Industrial Estates No. 1, 2 and 4
Estates of the Punjab Small Industries Corporation, now run day to day by boards of management drawn from the industrialists who operate there.
Education
Higher education in Gujranwala
Students once had to leave the city to study. The Chamber worked with government to bring the Punjab University Gujranwala Campus, Rachna Engineering College and Gujranwala Medical College to the city.
Help Education Trust
Scholarships for able students who cannot afford their studies, funded with the support of the Chamber’s members.
Social welfare
Prisoners Welfare Trust
Financial support for the welfare of prisoners, run with the administration of District Central Jail Gujranwala.
Trust hospitals
Cooperation with the city’s trust hospitals — Siddique Sadiq Memorial, Haji Murad Eye, Ibrahim Eye, Jinnah Memorial, Rafique Anwar Memorial, Allama Iqbal Memorial and Al Rai — and support for the district and social-security hospitals.
The city
Gujranwala
Gujranwala lies in the heart of Punjab, between the Chenab and the Ravi, on the Grand Trunk Road that links Lahore with Islamabad and Peshawar.
Its fertile soil and good ground water support three major cash crops — rice, wheat and sugarcane — and the agro-processing industry that grew from them.
Around that base the city has built clusters in household appliances, machinery, foundry work, agricultural implements, cutlery, ceramics and sanitary ware.
Major business sectors
- Rice & Agro Processing
- Cookware & Utensils
- Cutlery, Hunting Knives & Swords
- Textile & Apparel
- Ceramics
- Sanitary Fittings
- Plastic Products
- Pipes & Fittings
- Home Appliances (Electric & Gas)
- Automobile Parts
- Heavy Engineering
- Metal Processing
- Beauty Products & Cosmetics
- Rugs & Carpets
- Steel Security Equipment
- Food & Beverages
- Light Engineering
- Hardware Items
- Chemicals & Detergents
- Nylon Rope & Nawar
- Real Estate & Construction
- Paper & Paper Board
- Melamine Products
The Chamber’s members come from some thirty-four business sectors; the major ones are listed above.