Federal budget set for May 31 approval

APCC huddle to okay one of two proposals floated for PSDP

ISLAMABAD:

 

The federal government has called the Annual Plan Coordination Committee (APCC) meeting on May 31 to finalise the budget for the upcoming fiscal year 2024-25.

The huddle will give the nod to the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for the next financial year.

The annual macroeconomic plan and development program will be approved in the meeting. The APCC will also approve the national development outlay.

According to sources, the planning ministry has formulated two proposals for the PSDP, outlining the financial requirement of a sum of Rs2.44 trillion for 1,370 development projects.

The first proposal envisages demanding an amount of Rs1.17 trillion for 248 projects while the second one envisions seeking sum of Rs1.50 trillion for 628 projects.

A plan to allocate an amount of Rs769 billion for projects under foreign funding is also on the cards while prioritising finishing those that are already 80% complete.

There is a proposal for earmarking a sum of Rs71 billion for new development projects and allocating an amount of Rs328 billion for ongoing ones.

It has been estimated that a sum of Rs200 billion would be acquired through public-private partnerships.

A proposal to allocate an amount of Rs108 billion for non-specific projects has also been floated.

The finance ministry will allocate the development budget taking into account the funding capacity of the government.
It will also prioritise key areas for investment while allocating the development budget.

The GDP growth target of 3.7% is expected to be set for the next financial year. Similarly, the inflation target for the fiscal year 2024-25 is likely to be set at 11.8%.

Last year, the APCC approved the national development outlay at Rs2.6 trillion for the ongoing fiscal year, including a sum of Rs950 billion for the federal PSDP.

Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has said the government was hopeful about injecting some fresh momentum into projects that fell under China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

“The government is looking forward to forming joint ventures for renewable energy projects, agricultural production and possibly enticing some Chinese companies to relocate to Pakistan,” Iqbal, who also co-heads the committee dealing with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, said in an interview with Bloomberg.

“I’m very hopeful because I was in China recently and had meetings with their senior leadership…so I see great interest on the Chinese side to revive the momentum for CPEC and also to take it into the second phase.”