| Shehbaz promises every single penny of $2b IMF tranche to be spent prudently | Appreciates Chinese financial support for Pakistan during tough times | Says several mega projects including Reko Diq abandoned in past damaging national agenda
ISLAMABAD -Prme Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said the current economic scenario of Pakistan required tactical solutions to address economic problems and stressed for rising above politics to sort out the financial issues confronting the country.
Addressing the ‘Turn Around Pakistan’ conference, organised by Ministry of Planning Development and Special Initiatives here yesterday, the PM said economic self-reliance was imperative to achieve the goals of development and prosperity.
He said Pakistan is facing many external and internal challenges which are compounded by the existing commodity super-cycle and geo-political situation.
The PM said as the economic growth did not offer enough opportunities for national progress, short-term measures could act as a catalyst for speeding up the growth. He also said that financial self-reliance was the top most priority of the coalition government.
Shehbaz said focusing on the areas of agriculture, agro-based industry and exports was vital to strengthen the national economy. He stressed the need for judicious utilization of the $2 billion tranche from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and pledged that every single penny would be spent prudently.
He also mentioned the support of China during the tough financial times and helping Pakistan in its journey towards economic stability.
PM Sharif said there was no dearth of talent and potential in Pakistan and emphasized setting the right direction to achieve the goals of prosperity.
He pointed out that several vital projects such as Reko Diq were abandoned in the past that damaged the development agenda of the country.
He said also, many power generation projects were stopped that resulted in shortage of electricity and impacted the industrial growth.
The prime minister expressed satisfaction that the conference engaged all the relevant stakeholders which could hold the development sector together from across the nation.
He said wider and inclusive consultations of experts belonging to diversified fields could be helpful in providing solutions to come out of this economic quagmire. The conference was attended by representatives of political parties, federal ministries, provincial governments, national and international private sector entrepreneurs, international development and financial institutions, academia, think tanks, independent experts, NGOs and civil society.
The premier stressed the need for all quarters to work together for the country’s progress as well as the need for self-reliance. Self-reliance guarantees political and economic independence, he said.
Talking about the recent opening of a mega development project in Bangladesh, PM Shehbaz said that his counterpart had proudly announced that they had achieved this feat without the help of international donors. “Surely, this is a big achievement,” he said, adding that Pakistan was not lacking in resources or expertise.
He cited the example of Reko Diq, saying Pakistan had wasted billions but had yet to earn anything from the project. PM Shehbaz said that Pakistan was drowning under debts, saying the country’s liabilities far outweighed its assets.
He regretted that the 1,200-megawatt Haveli Bahadur Shah Power Plant, set up by the former PML-N government, had still not been completed.
“If you look at the electricity we were supposed to get, which was supposed to run the agriculture sector, our industries, [and] give millions employment; when you take all of this into account, then we suffered a colossal loss.”
During his speech, the premier said that Pakistan had nothing to show after 75 years of independence. “But nothing will be achieved by crying over spilled milk,” he asserted.
He went on to say that a few weeks ago, there was a danger of the country running out of edible oil. He said he wrote to Indonesian President Joko Widodo in this regard and also spoke to him on the phone.
PM Shehbaz went on to say that Pakistan was facing countless issues as he called for rising above personal interests and differences. “New governments blame the previous governments. We need to decide on changing the country’s fate and for that we need to work day and night. Unless this is done, we will keep moving in circles,” he said
