Lifeline inflows

Overseas Pakistanis are, indeed, an asset. The generous inflow of remittances, likewise, from them have acted as a cushion to get the wheel of the economy going. It is no small achievement that at a time when the global economy was plummeting, along with unprecedented rise in food and oil prices worldwide, cash tranches from expatriates were forthcoming. Apart from the sense of patriotism, the efforts on the part of the government are in need of being eulogised, which took the corrective path of digitalising the transactions and linked it directly with the receivers’ end. This buoyed confidence of the senders, besides enabling the state to prudently shore up the forex reserves. Staggering inflows of $15.8 billion during the first half of FY22, which accounts for an increase of around 12% compared with the previous year, is no less a bonanza.

The fact is that Pakistan’s economy is in dire stress. It is crisscrossed in an inertia at home and abroad. With the slump in pandemic statistics and the resuming of production to its maximum, a severe pressure is squarely evident on its coffers. This is why the government time and again feels like swallowing the bitter pill of conditionalities by international donors, especially the IMF, to stay afloat and be in receipt of much-desired greenback. In such a squeezing equation, expats are the saviour of our economy, and remittances to the tune of $29 billion per annum (according to previous year) is most welcome. What is needed is to cement the prevailing mechanism, and further supplement it with lawful securities. The Roshan Digital Account, altruistic transfers and several incentives on the part of the government to facilitate the expat community in taking care of their foreign accounts/transfers, housing and car financing are motivated steps and mean a lot. This reflects that the state values its diaspora, and the latest political initiative to grant them voting rights offshore is commendable.

The good point is that confidence is on the rise in the state of the economy, and with the forecasted upsurge in exports, the battered currency is likely to bounce back to a great extent. The pouring in of remittances is, and will remain, the lifeline of our treasury.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 17, 2022.

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