islamabad -
Pakistan has missed the economic growth target for the fifth consecutive year during outgoing financial year 2012-13 that shows the result of hollow economic policies of the previous Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) led coalition government in its five-year tenure.
The National Accounts Committee (NAC) on Friday projected that government could not achieve the budgetary economic target of 4.3 per cent during the outgoing fiscal year (from July 2012 to June 2013), as the committee noted that GDP growth would be around at 3.59 per cent. The PPP-led coalition government has never achieved the growth target in its five-year constitutional tenure that ended on March 16 2013.
According to the details, the government did not also achieve the growth targets of agricultural sector, industrial sector and services sector during the outgoing financial year. The NAC has noted that agriculture sector grew by 3.35 per cent against the target of 4 per cent. In agricultural sector, fishing record a growth of 0.65 per cent against the target of 2 per cent, forestry 0.13 per cent as compare to the target of 2 per cent, livestock 3.68 per cent against the target of 4.2 per cent.
The NAC also observed that industrial sector has also missed the growth target of 3. 8 per cent during the outgoing fiscal year as it remained at 3.5 per cent. The components of industrial sector have shown mixed changes, as some sectors have achieved the targets while others have missed. However the industrial sector as a whole has missed the target.
In industrial sector, mining and quarrying has recorded growth of 7.58 per cent during the outgoing fiscal year against the target of 3 per cent. Manufacturing registered growth of 3.51 per cent as compare to its target of 4.1 per cent. In manufacturing sector, large-scale manufacturing recorded growth of 2.83 per cent, small and household, 8.23 per cent and others 3.54 per cent. However, electricity, gas and water supply have miserably failed to achieve the growth target of 2.2 per cent during the year 2012-13 as it recorded negative growth of 3.2 per cent. The construction sector, in industrial sector, has achieved growth of 5.18 per cent as compare to its target of 4.5 per cent.
The National Accounts Committee has projected that services sector also missed the target of 4.6 per cent as it record growth of 3.71 per cent during the outgoing financial year 2012-2013. In services sector, wholesale and retail trade registered growth of 2.52 per cent against target of 4.1 per cent. Transport, storage and communication recorded growth of 3.44per cent, finance and insurance, 6.64 per cent; housing services (ownership of dwellings) 3.99 per cent, general government services, 5.6 per cent and other private services 3.99 per cent during the outgoing fiscal year 2012-13.
Meanwhile, according to the press release, the 93rd meeting of the National Accounts Committee was held under the chair of Secretary Statistics Division to review and approve the final estimates of the National Accounts for the year 2010-11, the accounts for 2011-03 and the provisional accounts for 2012-13. These accounts were prepared on the new base 2005-06 as well as the old base 1999-2000. According to the new base GDP estimates for the year 2010-11 final stands at Rs 9124 billion indicating a growth of 3.66 per cent. The GDP estimates for the year 2011-12 stand at Rs 9522 billion showing a growth of 4.36 per cent, which is subject in the next year. The provisional estimates of GDP for the year 2012-13 show a growth of 3.59 per cent over the estimates of last year.