Stressing that continued economic reform is an absolute necessity to reach a high growth trajectory, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has suggested, Pakistan address key constraints on growth since regulation remains burdensome, requiring more reforms to provide an enabling environment that encourages business and encourages investment.
According to the Asian Development Outlook 2017 report released on Thursday, it has forecast gross domestic product (GDP) growth to go up to 5.2 pc in FY17, and 5.5pc in FY18, underpinned by higher growth in the major industrial economies.
As the elections loom in 2018, the upcoming budget in June will likely prioritise measures to foster economic expansion.
Higher growth in FY18 takes into account the accelerated infrastructure investment through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is slowly lifting consumer and investor confidence and thereby further inducing economic activity.
The ADB report also stresses on the government to keep on addressing key constraints on growth in order to reap the potential benefits of CPEC, but consolidating these gains will take continued efforts, points out the report.
CPEC is considered to be a major game changer in terms of boosting growth and development for Pakistan. One of the major areas, where CPEC is expected to have a major impact is in minimising power outages that have held down economic growth in recent years.
