A glimmer of hope

No doubt, the country is currently confronted with daunting challenges of terrorism, beleaguered economy and mounting debt. These extraordinary circumstances demand collective efforts in the light of the saying of the Father of Nation "Let us mobilise all our resources in a systematic and organised way and tackle the grave issues that confront us with the grim determination and discipline worthy of a great nation"  In a nutshell, the current challenges demand a renewed  commitment  of hard work, dedication and honest approach.  

It's time to leap forward  and not to look back. For the economic revival, we need to take a leaf from our friend, China, which has applied a four-step strategy to increase exports by establishing a special economic zone, provision of cheap labour and energy inputs. However, one needs to keep in mind that consistency of economic policies is the key indicator in Chinese success. In fact, not only China but almost all the developed countries around the world stick to the effective economic policies, once devised irrespective of the political party in power.   Unfortunately, in Pakistan, the situation is altogether different. The party in power scrapes off all the policies and programs of the previous government which takes the country back to square one. 

This vicious cycle has created an environment of uncertainty for the investors and has therefore done more damage than good to the economy. However, the recent developments depict that Pakistan is making efforts to set the stage for sustained growth and regain the confidence of International partners. Improvement in Pakistan's credit rating by Fitch alongwith UAE, China and Saudi Arabia’s decision to roll over Pakistan loans and green signal from IMF for $7 billion package has restored confidence of local as well as foreign investors.

In addition to above,  Saudi Arabia’s decision to acquire a 15 percent stake in the Reko Diq mining project is being considered as an important breakthrough. The stake will be purchased through Manara Minerals, a joint venture between Saudi Arabian Mining Co (Maaden) and the sovereign Public Investment Fund,  To review the offer Pakistan has set up a negotiation committee  for final recommendation  to government.  Besides, Saudi Arabia will invest in developing infrastructure around the mining area. Talks have started with the Saudi Fund for Development to finalise the road scheme near the mining area.The first production from the mining project is expected by 2028.

The efforts of the government are yielding positive results as the economic indicators project an upwards trajectory. According to the Ministry of finance’s statistics, foreign exchange reserves ramped up to $9.4 billion, stock exchange performed well, and the inflation rate decreased by 12.6 % in the month of June. Last but not the least, a 7.7% rise in foreign remittances and IT exports exceeding $3 billion has also been observed. It is noteworthy that the SIFC’s efforts regarding improvement of the economy have also come to fruition as a staggering increase of 10.54% in export during 2023-24 was recorded.

Financial pundits are hopeful that these positive developments will pay maximum dividends. 

Now it's up to the government machinery to efficiently capitalise on positive developments and provide some sigh of relief to the masses bearing the brunt of inflation. Other avenues of economic development like minerals, energy sector, agriculture, and tourism also need to be explored on an emergency basis to steer the country out of the economic quagmire.