IN what could be termed as a very encouraging and positive development, the country received record high remittances of 2.768 billion dollars in the first month of the new fiscal year, following the record $ 23 billion remittances during the outgoing fiscal year. In terms of growth, workers’ remittances increased by 36.5 percent over July 2019 year on year basis and 12.2 percent over June 2020.
This growth has been achieved regardless of zero export of manpower after the breakout of Coronavirus which in fact also rendered hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis working abroad and they were brought to the country through special flights. This significant increase in remittances during the month of July can be attributed to a number of factors including orderly exchange rate conditions and policy steps taken by the State Bank of Pakistan and the Government which encouraged the overseas Pakistanis to send their remittances through formal channels. Raising the payment limits for information technology related freelance services from $ 5000 to $ 25000 per individual per month has also facilitated freelancers to increase home remittances through banking channels. Whilst the increase in remittances is really encouraging, the real challenge will be as to how the government moves forward to sustain the trend. From day one, we have seen the present government giving special emphasis and focus to the expatriates and rightly so as they have always proved to be a very precious asset especially during difficult economic conditions. They have always responded on every call. There is a need to further facilitate them in whatever the government can do. Rather the well-off expatriates should be approached and encouraged to invest in different sectors of the economy. Given the incentives given by the government to the construction industry, there is an excellent opportunity for them to invest in various sectors allied with it. This will have a multiplying effect on our economy as on the one side the country will be receiving remittances and on the other hand their investment will also help revive economic activity and create job opportunities.
