Economy: PM says govt to achieve its goals within 6 months

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Wednesday said despite political unrest due to protests to undermine the government, Pakistan successfully managed to achieve economic stability and fulfilled its fiscal targets.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif hoped that government will meet its economic goals within the next six months owing to the ‘tireless’ work of the economic team.

While chairing a meeting of the federal cabinet, he termed Pakistan’s two-year term as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) – starting from January 1, 2025 – as a significant achievement on the diplomatic front.

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At the onset of the meeting, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar briefed the cabinet about Pakistan’s term at the UNSC. A statement issued by the PM Office Media Wing said that “the federal cabinet terms beginning of Pakistan’s term as UNSC member, big achievement on diplomatic front.”

Sharif directed that the details of public sector imports from Gwadar Port, over the past three months, should be presented in the next cabinet meeting.

Meanwhile, the prime minister said that the protesters left no stone unturned in derailing the economy, but we succeeded in improving the financial landscape. He highlighted that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) achieved 97 percent of its December tax collection target, meeting commitments made to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

He was all praise for the officials for their efforts in mobilising resources, noting a significant contribution of Rs72 billion from Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) measures. He continued that the FBR management merits commendation, notwithstanding the significant disparity between the established targets and actual collections.

Sharif also lauded digitalisation of Karachi Port’s operations through $6 million grant from the Bill Gates Foundation, which has led to a 39 per cent reduction in container processing time.

He stated that initiatives undertaken by federal institutions and the military had effectively curbed the illicit flow of sugar and petroleum across borders, enabling the country to export surplus sugar.

Highlighting remittance inflows, he said that Pakistan received $15 billion in the first five months of the fiscal year, adding if the trend continues the remittances could surpass $35 billion, setting a national record.

“You should feel encouraged by the successes of the previous nine months, and as I said, growth depends on exports,” he added. In order to achieve economic progress, he said that it is essential to pursue export-led growth, as there are no alternative options available.

“In this context, I believe it is crucial to boost our growth sector […] stability has been achieved and now we have to move forward,” he maintained. Referring to the five-year plan, he said that for the new year, it would be beneficial if we remained on track and worked hard to achieve the goals set in the plan.

Sharif, while acknowledging these achievements, expressed concern over the resurgence of terrorism, attributing the rise to the Afghan government’s release of militants, a number of whomhad infiltrated Pakistan.

“Our security forces are making daily sacrifices to combat this threat,” he said, calling for vigilance and resilience.

He maintained that transparency and integrity is a must to take the country to new heights, adding nine months of government have passed, and there has not been a single scandal.

He acknowledged the challenges aheadand called upon all the stakeholders to get united for the country’s prosperity in the new year.

The cabinet gave its principled approval for legislation on amendments to Section 3(7) of the Pakistan Telecommunication (Reorganization) Act, on the recommendation of the Cabinet Division/Secretariat.

It also recommended approval of the regulations for the appointment of information group officers as press officers at Pakistan’s diplomatic missions abroad, proposed by the Information Ministry. These regulations would ensure a more transparent and merit-based process for the appointment of Information Group officers at Pakistan’s foreign missions.

The cabinet approved the registration/recognition of Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences, Thatta, on the recommendation of the Ministry of National Health.

The cabinet, in light of the judgment in Human Rights Case No 623-P/2017 by the Supreme Court of Pakistan and the recommendation of the Ministry of National Health, approved the reconstitution of a committee to determine the prices of life-saving medical equipment.

On the recommendation of the Ministry of National Food Security and Research, the cabinet approved sending the National Food Safety, Animal and Plant Health Authority Bill to Parliament.

It also ratified the decisions taken in the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Legislative Cases held on December 17, 2024. However, the ratification of amendments to the Citizenship Act has been deferred.

The cabinet accorded its approval to the decisions taken in the meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee held on December 18. The cabinet ratified the decisions made in the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on State-Owned Enterprises held on December 24.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025