Economic corridor not acceptable to many people: Nawaz

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on Thursday regretted that certain politicians couldn’t digest the pace of the country’s development and progress that would take place through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) while it was also clear that some external forces could not see Pakistan and its people flourishing.
Addressing the launch of a credit guarantee scheme for small farmers at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) auditorium here, Nawaz said Pakistan believed that the whole region should be terror-free, the only way forward for the comprehensive betterment of the people.
He said the CPEC was not being welcomed by those internal and external forces opposed to the progress and development of Pakistan.Without naming any internal or external leaders and players, he lamented that such elements did not want to see the country get new roads, power houses, infrastructure, health and education.
He said investment of an estimated $46 billion for the Economic Corridor was a bane for many and urged the people to pray to Almighty Allah to protect the country from evil intentions of enemies.
Nawaz condemned the Safoora tragedy in Karachi and said the government remained committed to eliminating terrorism. He reminded that special courts had been established after the unanimous decision of parliament for the speedy trial of terrorists.
Recalling his recent visit to Kabul, Nawaz said he and Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani were on the same page on coordinated measures to counter terrorism.The prime minister said he was pleased to participate in a scheme that would specially benefit the small farmers and would raise their standard of living and bring about a positive impact on the lives of rural people.
He said the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) had a clear-cut manifesto which was finalised after thorough deliberations. He highlighted many of the features of the (PML-N) manifesto that dealt with the agriculture sector.
The prime minister said easy loans would be made available for the agriculture sector and for improvement of livestock with a view to achieving self-sufficiency. He also talked about computerisation of land record.
He said agriculture was a priority area for the government and would be given the status of industry, while the scope of agricultural credit would be expanded.
Nawaz said when his government came to power in 2013, the national economy was in a dilapidated state and faced a number of challenges. He said with tireless efforts, the economy was experiencing a boom.
He said over 65 percent of farmers owned less than five acres. He said banks need to focus on deserving people and open their doors for them so as to help them stand on their own feet.He said the government wanted to improve resources for small farmers by providing them with better fertilisers, pesticides and farming equipment for increased yield.
He said it was not right to go out of the way to serve those who were already wealthy and still wanted loans of billions. He said those who had meager incomes must get money and they should not be deprived of financial assistance.
The prime minister said it was regrettable that young graduates were looking frantically for jobs or other ways to start their own businesses but they did not have the resources.He said the default rate of money for small borrowers was less than one percent as compared to those who borrowed huge amounts, where the default rates were higher.
The prime minister lauded the efforts of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for his efforts to strengthen the economy. He said Rs250 billion were allocated in the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for the energy sector alone in one year. He also lauded the role of the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited.
The prime minister was earlier briefed on the scheme aimed at facilitating the small farmers to increase their productivity.He was informed that agriculture had a 21 percent share in the national economic growth, while agricultural products constituted 60 percent of exports.
He was informed that Pakistan was the fourth largest cotton producer in the world and eighth in sugarcane besides being the fifth largest milk producer in the world with 41 billion liters of milk produced annually.
A UN report was also mentioned which predicted that in 10 years Pakistan will be one of the 17 countries which would face a serious water crisis and suggested urgent need for water conservation and management.
It was also informed that salinity and waterlogging were one of the major problems confronting the agricultural sector of the country. The meeting was also informed of the measures being taken to increase productivity, information sharing through model farms and introduction of mobile banking in rural areas.
The Credit Guarantee Scheme has been launched by the government to encourage banks to finance small farmers. The government, through the State Bank of Pakistan, has ensured provision of guarantee to banks for up to 50% loss sharing, which will benefit 300,000 farmers. The size of the total disbursement will be Rs30 billion.