According to newspaper reports, the executive board of the International Monetary Fund has praised the commitment of the government to introduce economic reforms and reduce near-term risks to the national economy. The donor agency expects growth of the gross domestic product by about 4.5 percent in financial year 2015-16 and wants government to contain inflation at around 4.5 percent by the end of the fiscal year. Despite the fact that the government has achieved economy stability to some extent and has bolstered investors’ confidence, the graph of exports and imports is falling with every passing day. The economy and population are correlative as more is population; more are chances of economic growth. People need houses, clothes, edibles and other amenities of life and forces of demand and supply work as engine of growth.
The World Bank is already wary of an increasing urban population in Pakistan and its pressure on infrastructure, basic services, and environment, hindering the prospects to turn the country into a vibrant economy. According to the World Bank economist Peter Ellis, Pakistan is the most urbanised country in South Asia which derives much of its economic growth from cities. Therefore, it needs to manage urbanisation to improve quality of life in the urban areas. Around 80 percent of the country’s gross domestic product is generated in cities and there is a need to improve quality of life in urban centers to keep the pace of growth and development intact.
According to the Finance Ministry, inflation has been contained at 1.86 percent during the first five months of the current fiscal year as compared to 6.45 percent of the corresponding period last year while the current account deficit has been narrowed to $532 million during four months of the fiscal year as compared to $1.8 billion in the corresponding period of the last year. The foreign exchange reserves have crossed $21 billion mark while tax collection is showing an improvement of 16.8 percent during the first five months of the current fiscal year as compared to the same period last year. The IMF chief has predicted a very bleak picture of the world economy in 2016. There are conflicts and challenges facing the developed as well as developing countries. However, in case of Pakistan, the government is taking loans after loans, but it is yet to be seen how the new loan will be consumed in the development projects in the country.
