(January 17, 2022)
Chairman of National Business Group Pakistan, President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum, and All Karachi Industrial Alliance, and former provincial minister Mian Zahid Hussain on Monday said the share of manufacturing in the national economy is steadily declining which is creating serious problems.
A large portion of capital is going to non-productive sectors, which is benefiting a few while affecting the economy and masses, he said.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that improved production, exports, and employment opportunities will remain a distant dream unless manufacturing is made more profitable than other sectors.
Talking to the business community, the veteran business leader said that investment in manufacturing can be lured to reduce dependence on imports, cut the deficit and tackle unemployment through proper intervention.
He noted that the share of manufacturing in GDP has been declining by an average of 0.1 percent every year for decades. Manufacturing accounted for 15 percent of the GDP in 90s, which has now fallen to 11 percent and is declining further.
The mini-budget will hit the manufacturing sector hard and shrink its volume if the system of refunds is not improved without further delay, he warned.
Mian Zahid Hussain further said that too much dependence on imports in absence of good manufacturing leads to a trade deficit and if the trade deficit continues to rise, then the balance of payments deteriorates, which results in debt.
The situation has reached the point that every government that comes to power has to start its tenure with the IMF program. The government borrows and announces that this is the last loan but soon it has to borrow again to save the country from bankruptcy.
The country that cannot control its spending and violates financial discipline invite IMF to rule it, he said.
