$1.5 billion gift: Friendly countries should be thanked, says Dar

Finance minister says the rupee will remain stable at around Rs98.

ISLAMABAD:

Federal Minister for Finance Mohammad Ishaq Dar said on Sunday that we should thank the ‘friendly countries’ for donating $1.5 billion as ‘gift’ for the people of Pakistan. He also said that the value of the rupee will remain stable at Rs98 in the future and may slightly fluctuate.

In a television interview, the finance minister said that the ‘friendly countries’ had full confidence in Pakistan and the government of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and they donated $1.5 billion unconditionally in the Pakistan Development Fund (PDF).

The minister said that the amount would be spent on different development projects in various sectors, including energy, infrastructure, railways, communication and transportation. He said Pakistan would get a huge amount after issuing 3G and 4G licences in the market.

Ishaq Dar said Pakistan has been ranked second in the world in terms of business growth in a survey conducted by the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO). A famous economist Jim O’Neill, has also forecasted that Pakistan would become world’s 18th largest economy by 2050 (from its present 44th position), he added.

The minister said that almost every single economic indicator from gross domestic product (GDP) to inflation, agriculture to industry, from imports to exports, from remittances to foreign inflows, from exchange rate stability to interest rate, fiscal deficit to revenues and from reserves to public debt shows a new positive beginning for the country’s economy.

“Allah has rewarded our pure and good intentions, the hard work that our government has rendered under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif,” he remarked.

He said that the PML-N government is focusing on extremism, terrorism, energy and economy of the country and all necessary steps are being taken to achieve these objectives.

Dar said that reserves position in the country would improve further with inflows of foreign investment and with the proceeds of forthcoming Euro Bond issues. The rupee will further strengthen in days to come, he added.

He said the economy had performed well during the first eight months of the current fiscal year as was evident from major economic indicators, such as growth rate, inflation, foreign remittances, foreign exchange reserves, external trade and industrial growth.

The minister said tax collection during the period increased by 17.7 percent as compared to the last year.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 17^th, 2014.