Terming the rise in Pakistan’s fiscal deficit and debt as “dangerous” for its economy, the World Bank has made several suggestions to the country to counter this problem — starting with the end of subsidies.
To improve Pakistan’s economy, the World Bank, in its review report, has recommended debt management and establishing a single treasury account, saying that the country could save Rs2.72 trillion annually by eliminating unnecessary expenses and subsidies as they eat up 70% of the budget.
Apart from increasing revenue, savings equivalent to 4% of the GDP were possible through these administrative measures, it added.
According to the report, Rs315 billion could be saved by limiting the development budget.
It was suggested to entrust various matters including 90% of the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) expenses to the provinces.
It added that a sum of Rs217 billion could be saved if the provinces covered 90% of the BISP cost.
The report pointed out that the tax revenue share of the federal government was only 46% while the expenditure stood at 67%.
