According to a report carried by Business Recorder yesterday, Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal has said that the PML-N government believes in economic agenda and does not want any sort of political disruption in the country.

He also said that the government is taking all possible measures within the limit of constitution and law to keep the things moving in the right direction and that ‘’the country’s economic indicators were moving in the right direction and collective efforts are necessary to make it a $3 trillion economy by 2047.

He said that the world considers Pakistanis as hard working and intelligent people’’

The planning minister was spot on insofar as the criticality of political stability is concerned.

But he perhaps was alluding to the recently launched ‘Uraan Pakistan’ economic programme through which the government has unveiled its vision and policy for achieving goals in years to come.

But there is an element of exaggeration or, in other words, wishful thinking, to say the least. Turning the present country’s economy into a $3 trillion economy by 2047 is a target that gives the impression of a very unlikely future event or achievement.

Successive governments came up with their own visions aimed at achieving meaningful economic development and progress. But little or nothing happened. What if this is another dose of misplaced optimism?

Sultan Salahuddin (Karachi)

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025