Call to improve revenue generation expenditure management

LAHORE : The experts at a roundtable on economic situation of the country on Saturday said the fiscal deficits were there since 2014, and would continue unless interventions are made at all levels of government in relation to key policy areas like revenue generation and expenditure management.

A roundtable conference themed, “Fiscal deficits’ of Pakistan Economy,’ was held here as part of the second leg of Grand National Dialogue under the auspicious of Islamabad Policy Research Institute, a news release said.

The distinguished panel consisted of Dr Maqbool Hussain Sial, Dr Ali Hussnain, Dr Ghulam Ghouse, Dr Fahad Ali, Dr Ummad Mazhar, Dr Akhtar Mansoor, Dr Rafi Amir Uddin and Dr Aneel Salman, Chair Economic Security at IPRI.

In his opening remarks, the former National Security Adviser (NSA) Dr Moeed Yusuf said, "Only word that matters for Pakistan is Economy. The rest is all linked with the amount and management of resources we have at our disposal.

"The speakers noted that Pakistan has a serious debt problem and fiscal deficit is a worrisome factor.

It has hindered growth, and led to spiraling inflation as well as battering of the currency.

"Pakistan’s economy has been facing perennial and persistent fiscal deficits, varying from as low as 2.9% to as high as 12.2% of its GDP, it was pointed out.

The budget deficit stands widened due to sluggish revenue growth and excessive government expenditure.

"To reduce this deficit, governments have been resorting to domestic and international borrowing, and cutting down on spending, which has negatively affected the country’s social and economic growth indicators, they said.

Ambassador Dr Raza Muhammad of IPRI stressed the need for being tolerant and reverent in our dealing with others that would ultimately go on to define the national character, as all the stakeholders cajole their synergies for putting the economy back on the track.

Dr Ali Hussnain remarked that taxation was not voluntary anywhere in the world, and it has come into force with a vigorous and effective collection arm.

According to Dr Fahad Ali, “We must be clear on what can and cannot be achieved.” He also said that providing subsidies to the sugar industry was not a good idea.

He furthered it by saying, “We need a lot of money to barely keep afloat. With glaring discrepancies in our tax regime, balancing the budget becomes all the more difficult.”

Wrapping up the discussion, the President IPRI emphasized the need for a collective and cohesive approach by political leadership of the country for resolving the country’s economic problems.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was also signed with the Center for Security, Strategy and Policy Research, associated with the University of Lahore, to facilitate academic collaboration between the two think tanks.

The signing ceremony was administered by Director CSSPR, Dr Rabia Akhtar, and President IPRI, Ambassador Dr Raza Muhammed.

Former National Security Adviser and Patron-in-Chief of IPRI Dr Moeed Yusuf was also present on the occasion.

The MoU stipulates initiatives to conduct joint research, publications, conferences and dialogues, and enable scholarly exchanges on a host of security and foreign policy issues.

The express intention is to produce more qualitative research in diverse fields, which is data-driven, enabling scholars and policy-makers to make use of it in a more comprehensive manner.