ISLAMABAD: Minister of State for Finance, Rana Muhammad Afzal Khan said that the government is keen to see Pakistan as an emerging hub of economic activity. The government has strived hard to enhance people’s access to financial services and achieve technological awareness and skill to enable them to contribute to the process of development in the country.
The minister was addressing the forum: “Pakistan Leadership Conversation 2018” organized by ACCA Pakistan here on Wednesday. The basic theme of discussion this time was ‘Collective Vision for an Emerging Pakistan’.
He also said that the government would not interfere in depreciation of Pakistani currency against the dollar. The value of Rs112 to Rs115 against the dollar is a reasonable rate. Market forces are now deciding about the value of the currency. He added that the government has to pay back $3 billion during remaining months of this financial year for which arrangements have been made.
Rana Afzal went on to say that people of Pakistan today are better able to access financial services, especially due to the availability and usage of the internet. They are fully abreast with the developments taking place in the world. But our journey does not end here, he said, adding that efforts are on to provide better training and facilities to the people to explore their potential and ACCA is one of the forums that is helpful in attaining this objective.
The Finance minister said that all over the world there is a change in the collective perception of doing business, new business arenas are coming up and people are exploring more innovative platforms. Pakistan in this respect has diversity and huge potential to offer. For example, there is a great scope of investment in agriculture (especially halal food), energy, and low-cost housing and we want the people to come and explore this potential.
He said that at the same time, we should be technically prepared to cope with the challenges of the competitive business environment and ensure international standards. China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he said, will prove to be a game changer and if we keep due focus and work hard, we could benefit from it like Egypt did from the Suez Canal.
The minister thanked the ACCA Pakistan’s Head, Sajjad Aslam for inviting him to the discussion and also appreciated the participants for sharing their ideas on ways to attain economic development.
