ECONOMIC REFORM AGENDA

(fazeel imtiaz, rawalpindi)

A STRONG ECONOMY IS THE BASIS OF A STABLE PEACFUL AND SELF SUFFIECIENT OF ANY STATE. Certain social and Economic conditions become a Danger for the Society when they start asserting negative influence on the society. Usually those social needs which persist in a Society for long period of time turn into Socio-Economic Problems .The major problems of society are linked with the providence of basic necessitates of life to the people making up the society .If the basic needs of a person – shelter, food and clothing are not fulfilled the deprivation of these needs gradually transform into different forms of social mances. Economic prosperity especially Wealth serves as a back bone for the overall progress of a nation One thing is common in all developed nations They are economically sound. When citizens of a country are freed from the worries of earning a live hood to sustain their lives they divert their attentions to more useful things. They focus on education improvise health care, develop technologies that make life easy and much more.

Poor economic condition is the Root cause of so many problems that exists in a society. In the context of Pakistan, owing to the fact that it is a Developing nation .There is no doubt that it is surrounding with a number of Social And economic problems.

The real issue is not the presence of these problems in Society because as stated earlier, there is no concept of an ideal society in the world. Every country in the world has its own set of social Economic problems. The main issue is the extent and intensity of the Socio-economic Problems of Pakistan Which has soared to alarming levels.
The economy of Pakistan is the 26th largest in the world in terms of purchasing power parity PPP and 42nd largest in terms of nominal Gross Domestic Product As Pakistan has a population of over 188 million (the world's 6th largest). And one of the Next Eleven, the eleven countries that, along with the BRICs, have a potential to become one of the world's large economies in the 21st century But the incapable government and its policies and insincerity have failed the people and this economic system.

Pakistan’s economy is consistently operating far below its potential. Consequently, its potential outcome has declined. The flawed approach and practices of tax collection machinery of the government keeps burdening the existing tax payers with more taxes instead of bringing non-taxpayers into the tax-paying circles. One budget cannot resolve all the problems. The budget should be a part of a grand design and it should at least be based on a three years vision. Stronger Institutional Framework should be the priority, rather than hankering after the projects. Once the foundation is built, projects would find the right time to accelerate. Our 40 % of our budget is only be spend on our payables our previous debts which we had taken for various purposes’  40 % is spend on our military our defense budget due to India.

And only we have 20% now from 20% we have to spend on education; health; day care; wages salaries of Gov. Employee’s and other Fringe benefit’s etc…

Pakistan’s economy could not face the budget deficit of billions’ if it creates venues to meet its expenses through generation of taxes and privatization of the public sector entities if the direct taxes could be easily generated through different profitable and high performing sectors including property, retail, agriculture and motor vehicle in a way that the low-earning class could be avoided from the burden. Improvement in withholding the tax regime will also be a major source of revenue. This is an issue of taxes being collected but not deposited in the government treasury. Whereas the ratio of agriculture tax is reduced to below 1 percent in the economy, which should be increased gradually. Privatization has a bad repute in Pakistan but it benefited the economy for real, adding that the privatization of banks made them profitable entities from loss-making companies. Budget reporting should be based on facts and figures without any sensationalism, which requires deep understanding of different subjects related to finance economy and taxation .How ever government apparently failed to create balance between direct taxes and indirect taxes which impact negatively on overall tax collection.

The indirect taxes of the government are on the rise as in the case of petroleum products with 25 percent of the taxes, collection of direct taxes should be increased. The government has to take measure steps immediately to safeguard economy on the right path and it should increase the tax-to-GDP ratio steeply.

Despite a record fall in oil prices saving billions of dollars pak trade deficit INCREASED by two billion dollars this year the drop in commodity prices internationally is also meant to save foreign exchange.

Finally, improving the investment climate will be essential for promoting Inclusive and sustainable, growth for which more resources will be needed to be allocated towards strengthening the country’s infrastructure, health, Education and Tax reform, without any hiccups. Pakistan is a gateway to the Gulf States and Middle East, where China seeks to showcase its soft power, and develop trade and diplomatic links. Pakistan’s economy is set to embark on a higher growth trajectory due to implementation of stabilization policies and invesments like pak china Economic corridor no doubt this project would prove to be a game changer for bringing economic revolution in the country but The China-PaK economic corridor is for China’s economic benefit and any related benefits to PAK are incidental. Why should China and India want to engage in conflicts on each other’s port, located few hundred miles apart on common major global shipping lane, where their trade currently surpasses

PAK annual budget
People should think globally and not in PAK centric view. There is no strategic benefit to china or pak , only Economic benefit, tilted in China’s favor. There cannot be any more strategic benefit of the port which PAK already has In my point of view if this investment would be I n the central cities of Pakistan or the business hubs in Pakistan like Karachi in technological intensives measures.

Economic growth or development is not the name of only making of the roads, metros and motor ways no doubt this is an small part of infrastructure development .to reduce Ur trade deficit positions and to create job opportunities’ in the market While keeping inflation low and budget deficit and debt under control are important objectives of macroeconomic policies which are the mother of all economic ills because When your priorities shift from education to METRO, you know the country becomes intellectually dead. The government must keep in mind that macroeconomic policies should not focus narrowly on reducing budget deficit, debt stabilization and curbing inflation, but should be supportive of growth and employment creation as well. Education is essential for poverty reduction and economic growth, as no country has achieved rapid economic growth without investing in education and reaching an adult literacy rate of at least 40 percent.
The energy crisis as a result of mismanagement of power sector has severely damaged Pakistan’s
Industries and commercial activities in addition to inflicting pain and miseries upon the people of
Pakistan, particularly during the summer time. As a result of the energy crisis, Pakistan is losing
At most 2.7 to 3.0 percentage points in economic growth each year. Without addressing energy issue,
Economic revival will be a distant dream for any government.
However the broad-based economic reform agenda must include: i) reforming the tax system and tax administration; ii) expenditure reform; iii) managing fiscal decentralization; iv) restructuring and privatization of public sector enterprises (PSEs); v) reforming the energy sector; vi) enacting reforms in the central bank; vii) improving the investment climate and viii) promoting inclusive and sustainable growth.
So however the suggested reforms are needed to rescue the country from the economic morass it currently occupies. Of course, the responsibility is upon the government to ensure the success of these reforms by inducting a team par excellence of professional economists as well as the brightest civil servants as possible to finish the job and build a resilient economy.

fazeel imtiaz
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