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Shaukat Tarin Says that Tax-to-GDP Ratio Needs to be Doubled

Shaukat Tarin, the Advisor to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue, said that in order to achieve economic development, the tax-to-GDP ratio needs to be doubled.

During a ceremony in Islamabad, the Advisor mentioned that he has assured the business community that they will be facilitated and they will not be harassed by the Federal Board of Revenue if they are willing to pay more taxes.

He further said that to achieve 6-8 percent of growth, the current GDP-to-tax ratio of 9 percent has to be changed to 20 percent. Tarin informed that the authorities already had all the relevant data such as billing information, bank account statements, and traveling expenses. The government would further use artificial intelligence to estimate people’s income with 88 percent accuracy.

Shaukat Tarin went on to talk about the Kamyab Pakistan programme where he pointed out the inability of the large banks to disburse small loans. He also said that the government had developed a formula to disburse loans through microfinance banks and NGOs.

The advisor stated that under the Kamyab Nojwan program, a total of 4 million families or 30 million people will be provided with a free loan worth Rs. 0.5 million.

Talking about the economy, Tarin told the audience that the government was focused on taking the economy forward, especially with the help of the agriculture sector. He highlighted the importance of financing the agriculture sector and SMEs as they only receive 6-7 percent financing.

During the ceremony, PM’s Special Assistant for Youth Affairs, Usman Dar, highlighted the key features of the Kamyab Jawan Program, which provided business loans ranging from Rs. 100,000 to Rs. 25 million.

He said that an amount of Rs. 100 billion has been earmarked for providing business loans to youth, out of which loans of Rs. 30 billion have been approved for 22000 youngsters, and the remaining amount would also be approved soon. Furthermore, he mentioned that KJP had created 50,000 jobs and the skills for all programs have a 60-70 percent employability ratio, which shows its success. He thanked ICCI, NAVTTC, and other institutions, including banks, for their cooperation in KJP.

In his welcome address, Muhammad Shakeel Munir, President Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ICCI), appreciated the launch of KJP to promote youth and assured that ICCI would fully cooperate to make it successful. He said that the youth was the most precious asset of the country and focusing on youth entrepreneurship would drive Pakistan towards fast economic growth besides reducing the unemployment issue.

He said that the government should address the concerns of traders on tax matters, including installation of POS, digital payments, bank accounts attachments, and sharing of taxpayers’ data by NADRA with FBR. He said that the Advisor to PM on Finance should visit major chambers of commerce starting from ICCI for consultation on budget proposals before finalizing the next budget.

 

 

Source: Pro Pakistani