‘Pakistan has missed many opportunities in the past’

Planning minister feels country is now on road to development

ISLAMABAD: Reflecting on past errors, Federal Minister Planning, Development and Reform Ahsan Iqbal on Tuesday said that political instability, inconsistent policies and disjointed governance have cost the country profoundly over the years.

Iqbal said that Pakistan’s Vision-2025 has put the country on the path of transformation. He stated this at the ‘Building for Tomorrow’ event organised by General Electric, attended by members of the federal cabinet and the corporate sector.



Iqbal pointed out that success stories around the world show the importance of political stability and consistency in policies.

“The country has missed many opportunities in the past to develop economically,” said Iqbal. “However, now we have a historic opportunity in the form of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to improve our economy.”

Iqbal said that CPEC would also turn the country into a trade and commerce hub in the region and would help sustain the goals of Vision-2025, aimed at improving regional connectivity.

Additionally, the minister spoke about outdated and irrelevant economic policies based on import substitution paradigm, which were adopted during non-democratic regimes, and pointed out that these policies ignored the export-growth strategy, resulting in stagnant levels of exports.

According to Iqbal, the disjointed platform also resulted in sluggish economic growth.

“In today’s age of economic ideologies, the country needs to invest in productivity, quality and innovation to become competitive in the global market.

“We need to adapt ourselves to the fast changing requirements of the new age.”

Published in The Express Tribune, May 18^th, 2016.

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