Govt making concerted efforts to revive economy: Sheikh

Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Abdul Hafeez Sheikh has said that the government is making concerted efforts to revive the country’s economy, which has shrunk amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Addressing members of the business community at the Governor House in Lahore on Thursday, he appreciated the role of the business community in uplifting the economy of the country.

He said that despite limited resources and the COVID-19 pandemic, the government has tried to provide maximum relief to the common man. The advisor said that the measures taken by the government amid the pandemic in form of the Ehsaas program and by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), in providing subsidized loans have been appreciated internationally.

It is pertinent to mention that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected GDP growth rate for Pakistan at 1 percent for 2021 against -0.4 percent in 2020.

The IMF World Economic Outlook (WEO) report "A long and difficult Ascent," projected a rise in unemployment ratio for Pakistan from 4.5 percent in 2020 to 5.1 percent in 2021. The Fund has projected inflation rate at 8.8 percent for 2021 against 10.7 percent in 2020. The current account balance is projected at negative 2.5 percent for 2021 compared to negative 1.1 percent for 2020.

Meanwhile, the World Bank (WB) has projected Pakistan's GDP growth rate at 0.5 percent, inflation rate at 9 percent and current account balance at negative 1.5 percent of GDP.