ISLAMABAD: Planning, Development and Reforms Minister Ahsan Iqbal has said due to prudent economic policies and use of 100 percent development funds this year the government has achieved a GDP growth rate of 4.7 percent which was the highest in the past eight years.
The minister stated this while a addressing a press conference at P-block auditorium.He said the government in the outgoing fiscal year budget 2015-16 fixed the GDP growth target of 5.5 percent but due to less growth in the agriculture sector and losses in the cotton production the growth rate was reduced to 4.7 percent.
He said when the government came into power in 2013 Pakistan was facing multiple challenges including security, energy and economy.He added that energy crisis was so severe that there was loadshedding of 18 to 20 hours daily and the industries were not getting electricity and economy was in bad shape.
Due to shortage of electricity the economic growth rate was stagnant and the conditions of social sectors including health and education were in poor condition, he added.Due to this situation in 2013, Pakistan was considered as low growth country he said, adding that the budget deficit reached 9 percent of the GDP as a result Pakistan was considered as unattractive investment destination and the security situation was also very poor.
The minister said after coming into power the government took a number of initiatives to stabilise and reform the economy.He added that due to the efforts of the government major economic indicators were improving and economy was performing well now.
Pakistan of today 2016 is far better than in 2013 and now it is gradually progressing, he remarked.The economy was now on the take off stage and would further improve, he further added.
He said the National Economic Council in its meeting held the other day has fixed GDP growth rate target of 5.7 percent for the forthcoming budget 2016-17. He hoped that keeping in view of improving economy, the government would be able to achieve the target of 5.7 percent.
The government would give special attention to the agriculture sector and provide relief to farmers in the agri inputs in order to reduce their cost of production to boost agriculture production and save them from the international commodities prices crash.
He further said government in the budget would also take steps for revival of the industrial sector to boost exports for the benefit of the country.He informed that in the year 2017-18 10,000 MW electricity would be added in the national grid. He added that universities funding would be enhanced from Rs20 billion to Rs24 billion during the financial year 2016-17 while the funding for Higher Education Commission(HEC) would also increased from Rs20 billion to Rs21 billion bedsides establishing universities in Fata, Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan. He also informed that every district campuses of universities would be established to provide higher education to the youth of the country on their doorsteps. He added that in next 10 years the number of PhDs would be increased from 350 in 2010 to 10,000 under US-Pak Knowledge Corridor in the country.
Highlighting the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) 2016-17, the minister said Rs655 billion have been allocated as compared to Rs580 billion earmarked in the outgoing financial year 2015-16.
He said the government had earmarked Rs1675billion in the forthcoming budget for the development schemes under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for the year 2016-17. Out of the total allocation Rs875 billion have been earmarked for the provinces, he said.
Giving the details he said Rs468 billion were allocated for infrastructure including Rs157 billion for power, Rs260 billion for transport and communications, Rs33billion for water, Rs18 billion for Physical Planning and Housing.
Out of Rs89 billion allocated for social sector Rs29 billion were earmarked for education including Higher Education Commission (HEC), Rs30 billion for health and population, Rs20 billion for Sustainable Development Goals Programme and Rs10 billion for other social sectors, he added.
The minister said Rs9 billion were allocated for science and IT, Rs8 billion for governance, Rs42 billion for special areas including AJK, Fata and Gilgit-Baltistan respectively.He said out of Rs4 billion for production, Rs2 billion each were earmarked for industries and food and agriculture sectors.
He said Rs28 billion were earmarked for special federal development programme under PSDP.The minister said development projects worth US $30 billion out of $46 billion to be initiated under CPEC framework across the country had become live.
The financing of these projects either completed or in the process of completion, he said.He said it was unprecedented that a piece of paper Memorandum of Understanding was convertedinto portfolio of $46 billion within short span of time.
Terming CPEC a unique gift for the people of Pakistan, he said different early harvest energy projects were being completed to meet electricity shortage and informed that mining at Thar Coal site had been started.
He said the electricity generation would start from Thar coal in 2018-19 adding Thar coal deposit would be sufficient for next 400 years if 5,000 MW per annum electricity is generated from Thar coal.
He said the Pak-China leadership and people of both the brotherly countries had complete faith in CPEC and they had expressed unflinching resolve to complete the project within stipulated time.