Islamabad, Aug 22: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that,the broad guidelines for a five-year economic revival plan have already been finalized after months of discussions with stakeholders. The plan is expected to be unveiled in the coming weeks.
Speaking at the Buna-Raast connectivity project’s opening ceremony, the prime minister announced that the “Home-Grown Economic Program” would include initiatives to strengthen the nation’s economy through the advancement of information technology, agriculture, and other unexplored fields.
“We are currently discussing our plans, which I will make public shortly. Much effort has been put into it. It entails months of talks and considerations with all parties involved. We recently finalized its general characteristics. We will finalize it by next week or so. The prime minister said, “I will go to the people and announce the program for the next five years.”
He addressed the audience, highlighting the difficulties associated with reforms in the power and Federal Board of Revenue. He also mentioned that he was personally keeping an eye on the digitization of FBR and that the government was optimistic about the results of power sector reforms.
The miracle bracelet doesn’t exist. It all comes down to sweat, blood, and sacrifice. Our country is healthy and powerful. Our people are vibrant and full of hope. Let’s combine our efforts. Let’s avoid wasting time on pointless arguments like we did in the past. Now let’s put this time to work by actually implementing it locally. Through hard work, hard work, and more hard work, you will see, insha Allah, that we shall reap the rewards and find our place in the community of countries,” he remarked.
Through the Buna-Raast connectivity project, millions of Pakistanis living abroad in Arab nations would be able to send remittances through a quick, easy way by connecting the Raast payment method with the Buna system of the Arab Monetary Fund, inexpensive and efficient system.
In addition to making the process of sending remittances easier, the prime minister claimed that this initiative will increase foreign exchange earnings and fortify Pakistan’s already friendly ties with the Arab world.
He claimed that the initiative will increase the reach of Pakistan’s digital payment infrastructure and referred to it as a significant advancement in the promotion of financial transactions using contemporary methods.
This demonstrates how Pakistan is progressing in the twenty-first century by integrating new technologies into people’s daily lives. Remittances will become more accessible and inexpensive thanks to this, the first cross-border real-time payment system linkage, he claimed.Prime Minister Shehbaz added that the initiative would hasten connectivity into a future model of a more expansive payment system in which payments might total over $20 billion annually and occur across regional boundaries.
He expressed gratitude to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, State Bank of Pakistan, Finance Ministry, Arab Monetary Fund, and Karandaaz for their assistance in getting the initiative off the ground.
Prior to this, he also presented the souvenirs to Dr. Fahad Alturki, the chairperson of the Arab Monetary Fund, Governor Jamil Ahmed of SBP, Dr. Anita Zaidi, the president of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and CEO of Karandaaz Waqasul Hassan.
