Planning and Development Minister Makhdum Khusro Bakhtyar has said the government is finalizing 12th five-year plan in consultation with the stakeholders with the aim to build fundamentals of the economy.
Talking to media persons in Islamabad Wednesday, the minister said core objective of the plan is to create 10 million jobs in five years and enhance sustainability of the economic growth through building fundamentals.
The minister said that we are cognizant of the fact that the 12th Five Year Plan is presented in the backdrop of serious macroeconomic imbalances and a huge structural deficit.
The minister said macroeconomic imbalances of this magnitude could not be sustained for indefinite period and a home-growth macroeconomic stabilization with human face is needed at this moment.
He stated that the growth strategy of the government is focusing on ensuring quality and inclusiveness of economic growth or human capital, up scaling technological capability, sustainable agriculture, social protection, strategic trade policy framework, national SME policy, financial inclusion, productivity and efficiency, and above all an investment strategy for efficient resource allocation.
Giving details of the main targets missed in the previous plan, he said the average real GDP growth of 4.8 percent during the plan masked many inequalities like crop sector grew marginally by 0.6 percent in these five years which employs 38 percent of labour force.
Public investment increased by 1.2 percentage points in this period to keep investment almost stable.
Makhdum Khusro Bakhtyar said National savings could not reach even at half the targeted level of 21.3% and fell to 10.4%.
He said previous government sowed the seeds of fiscal indiscipline by parking deficit in the commodity, Public Sector Enterprises and power sector deficits, which will continue to haunt the fiscal consolidation efforts.
Earlier, the meeting chaired by the minister was told that the average real GDP growth of 4.8 percent during the plan masked many inequalities like crop sector grew marginally by 0.6 percent in these five years which employs 38 percent of labour force.
The 5.8% growth in 2017-18 was based upon 6 months data and will be revised on the basis of full year data. One example is Large-Scale Manufacturing where growth was taken at 6.1% (7 months) that will be revised downward to actual full year growth of 5.2%.