Vows to boost economy in 2020;
Special focus to be given to tourism industry
Zubair Yaqoob
Karachi
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday said that the tough time has gone and vowed to transform Pakistan into a developed country saying that 2020 will be the year of growth for Pakistan, with special focus on the tourism industry.
Addressing Pakistan Stock Exchange Top 25 Companies Award in Karachi, he said that the government is committed to create new jobs and ease of doing business in the country. The prime minister said that 2019 was a year of economic stability and 2020 will be a year of Development, poverty alleviation, progress, prosperity, and creation of new jobs.
He said that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf led government has received numerous achievements during the last one year. Imran said that their economic team is available to resolve the issues of business community. Khan said that country was on the brink of economic disaster when PTI came into power and added that the current government has taken significant measures to boost economy.
The premier said the need of the hour was to incentivise the industries, help the business community, and focus on the small and medium-sized businesses. He added that his adviser on finance and revenue, Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, had informed people about the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s efforts to bolster the economy.
“A crucial problem was that the current account was in deficit, foreign exchange reserves had depleted, there were no dollars, there were debts worth Rs10 billion to be repaid, and a serious risk of the country defaulting,” he said. “We had to take some hard steps so that the country wouldn’t default. All those who understand this issue know what would have happened [in case of a default] and we have seen that happening in the Latin American countries and Lebanon. The prime minister noted that he and his team discussed the economic issues and efforts with State Bank of Pakistan Governor Dr Reza Baqir and his adviser on commerce, textiles, industries, and investment,
