CURBING militancy is essential for financial stability, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said as he wrapped up a week-long visit to Washington.
Officials accompanying the Minister to the World Bank and IMF annual meetings said the security-economy link surfaced repeatedly in many of the delegation’s 65 meetings during the seven-day visit. They said from credit rating agencies to commercial banks, everyone wanted to understand whether Pakistan’s security environment is now aligned with its economic recovery.
Once again, the Finance Minister tried his best to market Pakistan as a lucrative destination for investment and presented verifiable data about improvements in different sectors of economy during interaction with his interlocutors. There is no denying the fact that Pakistan is rising economically and strategically due to the prudent policies adopted by the incumbent government and this is also being acknowledged by the world community as confirmed by the improved credit rating of the country and successful implementation of the agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) besides growing foreign exchange reserves and a stable currency. However, some internal forces and external enemies have also become active to scuttle Pakistan’s march on the road to progress and prosperity and undermine its new found place in the comity of nations. It is also a reality that the Pakistan Army and security agencies are working hard to address this challenge and are making steady progress. Going by the level of focus on this grave challenge, it is hoped that the authorities concerned will succeed in addressing it in a satisfactory manner as a policy of zero tolerance is pursued vis-à-vis terrorism.
