A two percent extra Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth can be achieved by improving governance in Pakistan. Quoting a 'Transparency International' report, Dr Salman Shah, Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance, said this in a workshop on 'Improving Pakistan's Investment Climate World Development Report and Doing Business Dissemination' here on Saturday.
He said that Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz is focusing to bring political stability, provide justice at doorsteps, security of life and property, employment generation and development of natural resources. These measures would help boost economy, he said.
World Bank country director in Pakistan, John Wall, said that in Pakistan the cost of doing business was low but there was a risk of policy shift. Change of government brings shift in economic policies, depressing the prospects of investment.
He said that in developing countries, like Pakistan, corruption remains a big hurdle for achieving and surpassing its targeted growth of 8 percent. He said that without solving the said risks further economic growth would remain a dream.
He said that the government should initially develop public consensus. He stressed that without keeping in view the ground realities, policy implementation would not give so fruitful results.
John said that macro economic situation in Pakistan was better than other developing countries; however, undue time wastage in judicial system blocks investors.
The World Bank's report 'Doing Business 2005' findings also show that businesses in poor countries face much larger regulatory burden than those in rich countries. They face three times the administrative cost, and nearly twice as many bureaucratic procedures and delays associated with them. And, they have half the protection of property rights of rich countries.
Heavy regulation and weak property rights exclude the poor from doing business. In poor countries, 40 percent of the economy is informal. Women, young and low skilled workers are hurt the most.
The payoffs from reform appear large. A hypothetical improvement to the top quartile of countries on the ease of doing business is associated with up to 2 percentage points more annual economic growth.
Waseem Haqqi on this occasion said that that the government has no business to run business. "Policies are placed, but lack implementation," he added.