The Minister of Finance, Muhammad Aurangzeb, said on Monday that the next federal budget of Pakistan for the 2025-2026 fiscal year would introduce daring measures and provide a strategic orientation for the country’s economy.
Addressing an event organized by Karandaaz Pakistan and Pakistan Banks Association (PBA) in Islamabad.
According to a Buisness Recorder report, Aurangzeb said that the budget will focus not only on income and expenses, but that the wider economic path to come to you.
“We are going to bring daring measures during the 201025-26 financial year budget,” he said, stressing the importance of making the budgetary document “more strategic” rather than “making mathematics work”.
The federal budget should be presented on June 10, 2025, while Pakistan Economic Survey 2024-25 will be published a day earlier on June 9.
Aurangzeb underlined the need for growth led by exports and expressed its satisfaction that Pakistan’s economy has exceeded the $ 400 billion mark, reporting positive progress.
He also said that the international community recognizes Pakistan’s economic turnaround and the country’s macroeconomic stability.
However, Aurangzeb warned against the repetition of past errors, saying that the efforts of previous macroeconomic stability had failed due to “consumption directed growth” which triggered the balance of payments and exchange problems.
“To break with the boom and bust cycle, Pakistan must stay on course on structural reforms,” he said.
The Minister underlined the government’s commitment to current reforms on state tax, energy and public companies (SOES), as well as the good dimension of the federal government to ensure sustainable growth.
He admitted that advances in SEE reforms have been late last year, but promised that the government would accelerate efforts, including the revival of the privatization transaction of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), whose optimism it expressed.
Aurangzeb highlighted the plans to simplify the declaration of income tax declarations for employee taxpayers, aimed at reducing the number of measures required from 140 to 150 to only nine, to be implemented by the end of September.
Regarding debt management, the Minister of Finance said that the costs of the public debt service had decreased from Rs1 billion during the current financial year.
It also announced its intention to restructure and modernize the debt management office in the coming year.
Aurangzeb noted that long -term Pakistan’s economic objectives include becoming an economy of 3 dollars by 2047, but said it requires critical challenges such as demographic growth and climate change.
He referenced the 10 -year to 10 -year partnership framework signed with the World Bank, stressing that four development points on six keys deal with climatic and population problems.
The minister also commented on recent regional tensions, declaring: “These are very tense moments. The whole nation rightly celebrated the way our armed forces and our political leaders have opposed the assault. “
He revealed that efforts had been made to derail Pakistan’s commitment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), in particular attempts to block financial support meetings.
Despite these challenges, Aurangzeb said that Pakistan’s case with the IMF was ultimately “discussed and decided to merit”.
It has urged the same unit shown in recent times of aggression to apply to the economic front.
The IMF has ended its recent 10 -day talks on the budget for Pakistan’s 2026 without official agreement, announcing that the discussions will continue in the coming days.
Nathan Porter, the head of mission of the outgoing IMF in Pakistan, said that talks have focused on increasing income thanks to an improvement in tax compliance and the widening of the tax base, as well as the priority of expenses.
Initially planned to be held in Pakistan from May 13 to 23, the talks started at a distance from Turkiye due to the Indian-Pakistani tensions before moving to meetings face to face in Islamabad on May 19.
Previously, the government has postponed the presentation of the federal budget for the year 2025-2026 of more than a week, moving it from June 2 to 10, according to sources from the Ministry of Finance.
The delay occurs while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is currently on a multi-noble diplomatic tour to express his gratitude to friendly countries for their support during recent tensions with India.
Meanwhile, the IMF has ended its recent 10 -day talks on the budget for Pakistan’s 2026 without official agreement, announcing that the discussions will continue in the coming days.
Nathan Porter, the head of mission of the outgoing IMF in Pakistan, said that talks have focused on increasing income thanks to an improvement in tax compliance and the widening of the tax base, as well as the priority of expenses.
Initially planned to be held in Pakistan from May 13 to 23, the talks started at a distance from Turkiye due to the Indian-Pakistani tensions before moving to meetings face to face in Islamabad on May 19.
