ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) held a national seminar titled \u201cBudget 2025\u201326: A Blueprint of the Nation\u2019s<\/p>\n
Ambition\u201d to examine the federal budget\u2019s strengths and gaps.
Economists, policy experts, and business leaders came together to assess whether the proposed budget truly reflects Pakistan\u2019s development vision and priorities.<\/p>\n
PIDE\u2019s Dr. Mahmood Khalid praised the government’s success in creating macroeconomic stability but warned that fiscal transparency and strategic vision must follow.<\/p>\n
He said that without long-term coherence and credibility, stability will not lead to real development.<\/p>\n
Revenue and Reform: A Shift in Focus Needed<\/strong><\/p>\n Dr. Ali Salman from the PRIME Institute acknowledged the realistic revenue goals but cautioned that raising taxes without broadening the tax base disproportionately hurts low- and middle-income groups.<\/p>\n He recommended tax reforms targeting under-taxed sectors, empowering provinces through decentralization, and linking budget allocations with performance.<\/p>\n He emphasized that a predictable, fair tax system would not only enhance compliance but also promote business expansion and job creation.<\/p>\n Green Growth, Tech Integration, and Governance<\/strong><\/p>\n Dr. Safdar Sohail stressed the need to modernize Pakistan\u2019s economy by focusing on green and digital transitions.<\/p>\n He advocated policies that use technology, artificial intelligence, and circular economy models to improve productivity.<\/p>\n He also called for the budget to be a tool for reform in climate, competition, and service delivery.<\/p>\n Other experts including Dr. Hafsa Hina (PIDE) highlighted the constraints of IMF conditions.<\/p>\n She warned about rising inflation due to global trends and tax reforms but remained optimistic if policies are well-aligned.<\/p>\n Business Voices Demand Consistency<\/strong><\/p>\n Industry representatives like Mr. Qazi (ICMA) and Mr. Ramzan (Islamabad Chamber) called for stable and business-friendly policies.<\/p>\n They criticized abrupt steps like e-invoicing without groundwork and high tax rates, which increase operational costs.<\/p>\n Speakers emphasized the need to foster a competitive market environment, reduce regulatory uncertainty, and improve investment conditions.<\/p>\n The seminar concluded with clear recommendations: use frameworks like URAAN Pakistan, strengthen fiscal federalism, digitize tax systems, and involve civil society for better budget monitoring and transparency.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) held a national seminar titled \u201cBudget 2025\u201326: A Blueprint of the Nation\u2019s Ambition\u201d to examine the federal budget\u2019s strengths and gaps.Economists, policy experts, and business leaders came together to assess whether the proposed budget truly reflects Pakistan\u2019s development vision and priorities. PIDE\u2019s Dr. Mahmood Khalid praised the …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":4595,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2215,2216,2217],"class_list":["post-4594","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national-news","tag-budgetreform","tag-economicvision","tag-pideinsights"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4594","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4594"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4594\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4596,"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4594\/revisions\/4596"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4595"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4594"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4594"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/youdigital.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4594"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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