Finance Minister chairs budget preparatory meeting

Finance Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, chaired a preparatory meeting with FBR officials for the upcoming budget for FY 2017-18 on Thursday at the Ministry of Finance. Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Revenue, Mr. Haroon Akhtar Khan, Finance Secretary, Chairman FBR, and senior officials of  FBR and the Ministry of Finance also attended the meeting. Minister of State for IT & Telecom, Anusha Rehman Khan, Secretary IT & Telecom, and senior officials of the Ministry of IT & Telecom, also joined the meeting briefly to discuss tax-related proposals of the IT and Telecom sector.

The Finance Minister instructed FBR officials to finalize their budget work as early as possible according to the prescribed timelines. Chairman FBR informed the Finance Minister that FBR’s budget preparations are in their final stages, and will be completed in a timely manner as per the directions of the Finance Minister.

The Finance Minister highlighted the 5.28% GDP growth rate achieved by  Pakistan during FY 2016-17, which is a ten-year high, and the target for the next fiscal year is 6% growth. The Finance Minister emphasized that strong revenue generation will play a crucial role in achieving the targets for economic growth. He highlighted that great strides have been made in tax collections under the present government, and the aim is to generate even higher revenues in the coming fiscal year.